Checking Back In

Yeah, it's been a while, I know.

Last Wednesday I pretty much wore myself out getting campus ministry stuff done and preparing for a four-day trip to Nashville for the ELCA Campus Ministers' Gathering. And between travel and the gathering itself, it's taken me until today to really feel like I'm beginning to catch up again.

My desk is a disaster right now. For a compulsive neat freak like me, that's a HUGE problem. I do not like all the clutter, because when things get cluttered things get dropped, and I do not want to be dropping events, etc. in the days to come. So, tomorrow is a desk-cleaning day, made all the more simple because my administrator will be out of town for a funeral and I'll likely not be disturbed.

I'm really thankful that I went to the gathering, though - it was well worth the time away from family. Well, almost. I caught up with some friends I hadn't seen in years who are still doing great work in campus ministry, and made a bunch of new friends, also. I got some great new ideas for our own campus ministry, and heard about some spring break trips for next year that will be really great (Lutherstadt Wittenberg, here I come!).

Being Nashville, we heard some wonderful music, of course. For starters, we heard a presentation by Pastor Becca Martin, an Episcopal priest and director of Magdalene and Thistle Farms. She was incredible - passionate about her ministry and the uncertainty that comes with doing it. Her husband heard we were in town and said, "Hey, why don't I go down and play a song or two for them?" So he did - we got a free two-song concert by Grammy Award winner Marcus Hummon, writer of Closer to You and God Bless the Broken Road. Not bad when you can get it. AND I learned that if one Peter Mayer is good, two is even better. This Peter Mayer, who moonlights as Jimmy Buffett's lead guitarist, is as good a musician as the Peter Mayer of Minnesota / Blue Boat Home fame. Unfortunately, this Peter Mayer doesn't have any youtube videos, otherwise I'd post something. But you can check out his excellent Lutheran rock (including a song attributed to Luther Seminary's own Dr. Rollie Martinson) at petermayer.com.

Unfortunately, air travel added a lot of tension and very little relief to my trip. I'm enjoying flying less and less each time I have to fly, and at this point I'm seriously considering driving to anything less than 8 hours away for the near future. I spent all day Thursday and all day Sunday in airports, and believe me, the only thing I like to do in airports is walk out the door. Combine that with seats next to the lavatory on a tiny commuter jet with lousy snack service and you've got a recipe for extreme annoyance. I will say this, though: the airline staff were all marvelous. I don't know if they're trying to be kinder and gentler now that their profit margin is getting squeezed more and more by gas prices, but whatever it is, I got way more smiles and hospitality than I'd expected, and that did make for a much more enjoyable experience. Still, next time it's behind the wheel with a good book on CD to keep me company.

I'm discovering more and more that the major drawback to campus ministry is time away from family. I expected this, so it's not surprising, but it's hard to stomach at times. Kristin told me that the second day I was gone, Ainsley walked to the front door and made her "guy with the hat" sign, which was her way of asking where I was. When she told me that over the cell phone it was all I could do to keep from sprinting to the Nashville airport and begging for the next flight home - I missed my girls that much.

So, that's the post-trip report. Today is the anniversary of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's murder at Flossenburg Prison Camp, so we're doing a Bonhoeffer video tonight in chapel - thus no reflection will be posted. See you soon, friends. God bless.