Chicago, part 3: leaving Trinity

This was the second and final week of my class at Trinity Christian College.

The ideas of the program were definitely more conservative (politically and theologically) than my own, but I really appreciated the time I spent there. It was really fun getting to know the other students a little bit, hearing their thoughts, passions and stories.

The last night of the Institute, I still had a lot of reading to do. So, I stayed up late into the night studying with some of my new friends, Kara, Rebecca, Rick, and Kyle. At midnight, we took a study break and all went to TGI Fridays for dessert. It was fun to be able to talk about whatever we wanted, to laugh out loud, and just enjoy one another's company. When we returned to campus, the night was so warm we took our books and laptops outside and pretended to study for a while out there. We went back after a little while, and after everyone else went to bed, I returned outside to continue work on my final paper.

Around 4, as I stepped out alone for the first time all night, I heard the birds fill the night air more loudly than any other time of day. I had forgotten about all these early birds. Their songs filled the still air, without disrupting the peace of the dark night sky. I wanted to join them, to sing in worship to God, but when the breath began to leave my lips, I could not bring myself to speak. Their songs were a piece of the silence of the air. My words would be a distraction. I was here as a witness to their song, stumbling upon a rehearsing choir and listening in unnoticed in the dark empty hall, the quiet grass of the small campus. Upon finding a place to seat myself, I allowed myself to be simply still. I watched as the dark of the night began to fade to light. I watched the silhouettes of birds flitting in the trees and to the tops of buildings. It was a beautiful sight.

No photos this time. Go read a poem instead. 

Like this one! http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-peace-of-wild-things/

Maybe throw in a poem you're fond of in the comments section. Especially something by a living poet.

Chicago, Part 2

So what am I doing in Chicago, anyway?

In response to a lot of encouragement from both of my academic advisers at PLNU, I decided to attend the Law, Justice, and Culture Institute at Trinity Christian College, in Palos Heights, Illinois. Basically, it's a class on  the history and philosophy of a way that Christians should act in and interact with politics, especially in the United States.

So far, the best book we've read was Living as the People of God, by Christopher J.H. Wright. It's not in publication anymore, but they got permission from the author to reproduce it for the Institute. Basically, it runs through a way of reading and applying Old Testament law. Rather than trying to reproduce it law-by-law in modern society (an approach few people would advocate today), Wright recommends what he calls a "paradigmatic" approach: identifying the core ethical ideas being addressed by a law within the specific culture of ancient Israel, and making sure that these principles are addressed in our approaches to justice today.


It's weird being here at Trinity. It's been so long since I've been surrounded by Christians, talking about Christian things in Christian terms. At Loma this past year I've kind of gotten out of the habit of talking about God or faith with pretty much anybody, especially since I've had other things pressing on my mind, from coursework to changing social systems. Being in such an intentional situation again is a good opportunity for me to reevaluate what I believe and why. Or at least, it's a spark. I'm hoping to spend a lot of time reading Rachel Held Evans's blog this summer, and I think these first few days have gotten me interested in doing so again.

The people I'm meeting here are very interesting. Dr. Sue Emmerich, who taught a creation care "Practicum" at the start of the Institute, is an environmental consultant who has worked in many different parts of the government, including the United Nations Environment Program and the EPA. She also has worked solving environmental conflict in the Chesapeake Bay using a faith-based, anthropological approach (see the ten-minute trailer about her work here). We've already gone out birding once, and I'm hoping we can again!

The other students are fun. A few are students at Olivet, a few others go to school here at Trinity, and then everyone else is scattered among other Midwest schools. Meeting people here, in an entirely new setting, I have the opportunity to reflect on what it is that makes me me. What do I share? What do I do with my spare time? How do I respond to what others share with me? Am I proud or humble, patient or impatient, kind or ornery? Adventurous or lazy or respectful or immoral?

These are the kinds of questions I will have LOTS of time to reflect on over the next year, as I continually move from place to place. But this is what I need: an opportunity to define and redefine myself, and see what sticks. To just be myself, and see what feels natural, what feels true, what feels right. I have defined myself with respect to particular people, situations, and circumstances while I've been at Loma. It's time to see what of that is truly myself, and what of it is just part of my social environment that I was wrapping around myself. And when I return home, I will bring with me what I have found to be myself, along with the pieces of the places I've traveled.

some photos from Chicago and the LJC Institute

The scene from outside my window as I rode the train from LA to Chicago. I passed all kinds of terrain, but this was one of the first tree-dominated landscapes I saw.

The Chicago Diner: awesome vegetarian restaurant, recommended to me by my new friend Mike M. After a long day in search of someplace to eat, this place was perfect!

The go-to hangout spot at North Park University, a dutch restaurant across the street from campus. They were kind enough to make a lunch item for me, since all of their dinner items were unfriendly to vegetarians.

Harold Washington Library in downtown Chicago. This is the 9th and top floor, where they have beautiful sky views and lovely seating areas with green trees growing and some lovely artwork inside. The entire library was beautiful, architecturally imposing all throughout. They even had musical practice rooms on one floor!

Me and Mike. Mike was an unbelievably kind host during my time with him, making it a point to spend time with me and share with me even though I came at a time when he was trying to move. I could not ask for a better host, or a better friend to make.

Now, onto more recent history. The whole reason I'm in Chicago is for a class on law and faith at Trinity Christian College (more on that later). Today, the class took a trip to Brookfield Zoo! We were split into about three groups, and this was my group: from left to right: Drew, Dan, Kara, and, of course, me!

Tapir!

This is how our team measured up against the height of a polar bear. Conclusion: polar bears are HUGE! 

Real post later, just wanted to get some photos out!

a new beginning

            This week I embarked on the first of what will be a series of adventures one after another. Over the next 8 months, I will be traveling to Chicago, Illinois, for a class on politics and faith; Columbus, Ohio, to visit the fam; Sequim, Washington, on the Olympic Peninsula, for a summer research internship; Panama City, Panama, for study abroad; back to Columbus for the winter holidays; Washington, DC, to witness the inauguration of our next President; before finally arriving back in San Diego for my last semester at Loma.  After a hard year at Loma, these adventures will be a good chance for me to rediscover who I am, what matters to me, and how I want to live my life. Bold goals, I know. But I think a journey of self-discovery is the best environment for bold goals. 

Chicago, Part 1

            The first lesson I’ve learned about myself concerns planning. I am, by nature, a planner. Accordingly, I’ve had my life roughly planned out for last five years, with modifications here and there. But I also have a fascinated love of spontaneity. That’s not to say I am myself very spontaneous—again, I’m a planner. It’s hard for me to make decisions suddenly, to just let things go. Still, uncharted adventures, where things just fall into place, have a romantic appeal to me.

            So when visiting a new city I have two compelling desires: the desire to plan out everything I am going to do, and the desire to let everything slide into place, deciding everything on a whim. In my first 24 hours in Chicago I think I’ve found myself some compelling arguments for both of these methods.

            I planned to arrive in Chicago two days early. On coming to Chicago, my plan for finding a place to stay had been to figure it out online during the train ride in. Since the ride from LA to Chicago is about two days long, I figured it would be plenty of time to figure things out (especially since finals week was stressful enough that it would have been hard to sort things out then). Imagine my surprise when I (re)discovered that there was no wifi on the train I took!

            Thankfully, through negotiations with my friend Marissa (an adventurer herself, who I met in Belize) I was able to find a place to crash for the two nights before my housing for Chicago kicks in.

            When I finally had lugged my luggage to Mike’s place, I was honored by his hospitality. He helped me carry my bags, offered me food and water, and set me up with towels for cleaning up. But more importantly, he invited me into his apartment’s evening plans: Super Mario Wii, on the roof, at 10:30pm at night. You know you’re in good company when you’re invited onto the roof to play video games late into the night. It was so much fun. I was so glad to have ended up at their place to stay, even though it didn’t come together fully until the last minute.

            Today, I found myself in a new city with no plans for how to spend my day. Once again, I was not able to track down wifi (apparently I cannot function without ubiquitous Internet), so I decided to just venture forth and figure things out when I got downtown. I checked out the downtown library (I’ll always be a library nerd at heart), then my brain began to stall. I fumbled around, looking for something interesting to eat or see or do. Unfortunately, just bumbling around alone does not facilitate the magical appearance of interesting sights to behold, and my map was conspicuously unhelpful in discerning what I wished to see.            

Wandering around, I felt as though I was wasting my opportunity, missing out on adventures untold. This feeling of aimlessness is the downside to the “just see what happens” approach for me. I know if I was totally that spontaneous person, it wouldn’t bother me so much, but I know that’s not exactly me.

 Eventually, I texted my host for help, and he offered up a perfect solution: a local vegetarian restaurant, “The Chicago Diner.” The place was excellent—good food, lots of choices, and a good atmosphere inside. And it was an opportunity to see another corner of the city while I was out and about.

So ultimately, I’ve learned the importance of both making plans and being flexible with them. Going forward, I want to do a lot of research on the places I go before I go—reading, talking to people who have gone, maybe watching a travel show if I’m really desperate—so I will know what there is to see. And then, once I get there I want to have a list (I love lists!) of things I want to see or do, so I’m not ever stuck feeling like I could be doing something but don’t know what to do. On the other hand, I need to hold on to these plans lightly, staying open to be influenced by the course of events, so I can enjoy the adventure I’m having and not just complete my list.