Let's get down to business..

Hello from across the pond!

This past week I realized how much work I need to do to feel the semblance of preparedness for my exams, which are on December 10th and December 16th. So I got my academic game-face on. I didn't get around to as much of Aberdeen as I would have liked, but it was a wonderful week nonetheless. Enjoy!

Scottish word of the week: Kirk: n. A church.

Picture(s) of the week:











I was able to commandeer an entire reference room in the library. If you're in the mood for a great combination, try salted potato chips and nutella (idea courtesy of Jess Kohnen). Salty and sweet to perfection.

What I've been up to - in bullet points

Monday

• Practicing 4 hrs. of piano
• Turning in my problem solving questions for BM3006
• Enjoying Thanksgiving at the Christian Union! And winning a quiz on America!
  
• Working on my photobook
  

Tuesday

• Enjoying the last of the MB3005 Practicals
• Starting work on my essay. Here's the title: Nucleocytoplasmic transport of Rev in HIV-1, or, There and Back Again: A gene's tale. Hopefully my marker doesn't find the reference to The Hobbit improper for a scientific essay...
• Practicing 3 hrs. of piano
• Attending a lecture entitled Development of the Aberdeen Clipper: Innovation by Design. There were many neat paintings of ships, of which I'm a big fan.
  

Wednesday

• Pushing through the weekly Wednesday lecture marathon
• Practicing 4 hrs. of piano
• Watching the weekly Hitchcock movie. This week it was North by Northwest, which is a brilliant film.

Thursday

• Feeling extremely confident on the BM3006 formative exam despite only studying 1.5 hrs.
• Working on the MB3005 essay in the library
• Practicing the piano for my lesson
• Playing well in my lesson!
• Celebrating Thanksgiving (on the day of) with a slice of sweet-potato pie
  

Friday

• Attending class
• More essay writing
• Attending more class
• Making and enjoying yet another culinary staple: cheese and bacon pasta with cheese and bacon pasta sauce. Delicious.
• Playing settlers
  

Saturday

• At the library from 12-8:43 working on the essay
• Listening to the Hope-Calvin game on the radio online. The last three seconds nearly killed me.
• Finishing the essay! It is complete with a picture of Bilbo on the cover page. We'll see how that goes...
  
• Winning 2 out of 3 in settlers!
  

Sunday

• Taking the bus from Aberdeen to Methlick
• Attending Methlick Parrish Church
• Celebrating the Sabbath with the Canlis family
  

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK - Sabbath with the Canlis Family

and

Random section of the week - On Cars and Computers

During a chapel service last April a guest speaker, Julie Canlis, gave a sermonette on how God pursues us in different ways during different seasons of our lives. It was mentioned at some point in her introduction that she lives just outside of Aberdeen with her family, so after the service ended I introduced myself, explained that I would be studying in Scotland the following semester, and recorded her email address.

During October, out of the blue, I sent her an email reintroducing myself and asked about visiting the church. After exchanging emails it was decided that Nov. 29 it would work to go out to Methlick (20 miles away) to visit the church.

At the time I had no idea of the enormous blessing that I was going to receive.

When I arrived at the church this morning I was greeted by Matt Canlis, Julie's husband. He gave Andy and I a brief tour of the church (churches have been at this site since around 410 A.D.), we said a brief prayer for the service, and then took our seats. It was previously arranged that I was to play the prelude, so I played for around ten minutes then returned to my seat. The Parrish is the smallest in Scotland, yet the church did not feel empty. On the contrary, there was a spirit of vibrancy in the air. Children piped up during the children's sermon to answer questions, the singing of the advent hymns was enthusiastic, the sermon was thought-provoking, and the fellowship over tea and biscuits was genuine. Amazing things are happening at Methlick Parrish Church.

From church we walked to the Canlis household, which was a mere two minutes away. It is hard to describe how nice it was to be in an actual home. (I'm sorry - Burnett House does not count.) Toys littered the floor (there are four children under the age of 10), happy photographs sat on shelves, art (as opposed to movie posters) adorned the walls, and shelves of books with well-worn bindings were tucked in every corner; upon entering one could tell that this was the residence of a very happy family.

After helping butter and cut bread slices, we enjoyed a delicious lunch of French Onion soup. Conversation at the dinner table wandered leisurely from subject to subject; we started with telling our stories and eventually progressed to discussions about history, consumerism, and theology. An idea that I hadn't heard before (which I agree with) was the contribution of the car to the individualistic culture that is found today. People gained the mobility, and consequentially the freedom to make their own choices about where to shop, what to eat, and where to go. Along with increased mobility came a lessening of community, ultimately resulting in rootless people - those who are everywhere yet nowhere, present yet absent, occupied yet never truly engaged.

The equivalent of the car today, Matt argued, is the computer. People are able to create virtual realities for themselves which they too often substitute for reality. Face-to-face interaction is substituted with virtual interaction. Inevitably something is lost.

At this point in the conversation I asked him for his opinion on Facebook. Despite living in many places around the world, undoubtedly making many friends in each location, he does not have a page. I completely agree with his reasoning: his relationship with God, his family, and his Parrish come first; time spent on Facebook is time that is spent away from them is time spent away from the top three priorities in his life.

Now, I'm not claiming that Facebook is a bad thing, for I believe that it isn't. However, I believe that it must be used with caution. I often find myself wasting time on the site, time that could be better invested in other places.

Following dinner time was spent relaxing with the family. Conner and Madeline both play the piano, so it was enjoyable hearing them play and playing for them in return. I jumped on the tramp, helped hang up Christmas decorations, played the piano for the singing of Christmas Carols (we made it all the way through the 12 days of Christmas), and listened to the reading of a chapter from a wonderful children's novel. Before I knew it it was 5:00 and dinner time. After a delicious casserole and more good conversation we had to leave to catch our bus and said our goodbyes. While walking down the driveway I turned around and saw the four children in the back of the family van with their arms waving wildly back and forth like windshield wipers, waving us off. I did the same, and the family passed out of sight.

It was an incredible blessing to spend a Sabbath with such a wonderful family - I won't ever forget it.