I begin every semester at seminary with renewed vigor, promising myself that this time, come exams, things will be different. I will be ready. Our house will remain clean, and will be a haven in the midst of a stressful time. And every semester, I am WRONG.
The end of the semester always seems to sneak up on me. We have a lovely Thanksgiving and then BAM! Insanity in sues. We are behind on schoolwork and scrambling to meet deadlines. We eat more fast food in one week than the rest of the semester combined. This is due, in large part, to the ever growing pile of dishes that we would have to tackle in order to cook something (we don't have a dishwasher, so there is no quick fix.) Yes, like a disease they have spread from the kitchen sink to the kitchen counter, and have even found a way to the kitchen table and other random spots in our apartment. We even found mold growing in a chili pot we had neglected to clean for several days. Disgusting. I am not sure why our apartment doesn't smell awful, or maybe it does and I have become immune to it. The worst part of it all is that this is the beginning of Advent, one of my favorite times of the year, and I have not yet been able to enjoy it, or to stop and reflect on the coming of the Savior. And it is tough to decorate one's house for Christmas when it is, well, a pigsty!
Lest I start to feel too sorry for myself, the good news is that the end is in sight. I will tackle the massive amounts of dishes today, though I am wondering if I need some sort of protective gear to do so. I will take some time to stop and reflect, journal and read my Bible for the first time in a week. Our assignments will get done and things will work out. And maybe, just maybe, next semester I will be ready. Or you may be reading a post quite similar to this one come May. Only time will tell.
