Troubled Past and Minor Setbacks!

It's been a few days, again, since my last update, but hopefully this will only be a minor setback - as I am generally feeling better now.

The fact is, this entire semester has been really really hard to deal with. I can't make a list of the specifics but it seems that almost everything that has happened has contributing to things not working out. And since it's been going on basically since the end of January, I'm quite sick of it now.

Instead of making a really long and boring and depressing entry about everything that has gone wrong, I will focus on what has been going right this semester - and I will try to finish off by giving you some insight into how the future will turn out (which I really don't know, but still ...), what areas I will have to start dealing with now ...

One thing that has worked out this semester has been the mentor activity in the Old Testament/Hebrew course. There were a lot of uncertainties for me last year and I very much doubted my own capabilities - so I was thrilled to get another chance this year. And I think it has improved, at least that's the way I feel about it. Not everything has been going great of course, but I think I have handled my "leader role" in a better way this time, and I've had a lovely group of students to work with. I was also quite thrilled to get such as large group. Both the entire group that has been taking the course as well as the mentor group has gone through some changes during the semester, but toward the middle of the semester it started stabilizing in both groups, and by then the entire group of students were about 10 and 6 of them constantly came to mentor meetings! Fantastic!!

Another thing that has been working out (almost completely) has been the New Testament. I was going to take one small course in NT this semester, and felt I really needed to freshen up my koine-greek, so I spoke to the teacher giving that course (same one I had when I took NT Greek). He was only happy to see me at lectures again (lol) so I ended up going to most of his lectures as well. It turned out really well, I like him a lot and I also learned A LOT by picking this up again in this way!

I had some major problems with a smaller essay I was going to present at the end of this semester. For some reason it seemed impossible for me to write it, so I ended up in quite a panic toward the very end. I did finish it, but I wasn't that happy with it, and at the seminar I felt really bad. I can't be "objective" and say what really went on there, because I think I was quite affected by how tired and emotional I was, but let's just say I did NOT enjoy that seminar, that's for sure!!!
I had a few days to correct some things that had been addressed at the seminar and late last week I handed in the final version. And yesterday I had an email from my professor, telling me he had graded the essay and given it the high grade, VG!!! I really did NOT expect that at all, since everything about this essay had been so difficult! Also, I had basically felt that as long as I don't fail it, I just have to deal .... and instead it turned out really well! :D

Letting you rest your eyes for a bit with some photos from one of my nature walks (hasn't been that many of them this semester unfortunately):




And a CUTE Zorro! :D

This semester hasn't exactly worked out well for my Dad and his family either, my Dad being quite ill, so toward the end of May I decided to making a short trip to visit them. It did mess up my other schedules a bit but it was really nice to see them all again! They let me borrow their car, so I took Zorro on the train there (but we ended up having to go by bus the last bit due to some flooding ... *poor Zorro*), but we could take a car back home.
On the way home we went in to see the summerhouse, I just stopped for half an hour. During the end of last summer we redecorated the bathroom, and I was there for the boring part (ripping everything out) but hadn't seen the finished product. Also, we had some severe damage done (thankfully mostly to nature and not to our buildings) due to the heavy winter and snow this year, so I felt I had to see that for myself too.
Here are some pictures from my trip, the kids first (they grow SO FAST!!!!!), and some from the summerhouse at the end:







One more note before I start looking ahead. This Sunday I was at the ordination ceremony where four of my closest friends were ordained for the priesthood! I was there fore the ceremony last year too, for Sara, and this year it was time for Lena, Rebecka, Johanna and Per - it's amazing to be there and share that with them. I didn't attend any party afterwards, since there was no way I wanted to choose which one to attend, but it was wonderful to be there for the ceremony! :)

I think this entry ended up being longer than I had intended! :) So I think I'll save the "looking ahead" for the next entry, as I don't want to cause you to fall asleep in front of the computer! :)