A piece of my life

Hi friends

It has been awhile. The month of December was simply a whirlwind. After our Christmas break, we return for 3 more weeks of classes followed immediately by over two weeks of exams. Simply pondering this fact has taken up more brain power than I can afford.... I have been attempting, however poorly, to study rigorously and systematically and.... ultimately, not fail. But that is yet to be seen. I will have a total of 8 exams. As of now, I have 7 left - 4 next week and 3 the following. The exams are intense, one on one, oral (for the most part) and constitute the entirety of my grade for the semester. So, you know, not too much pressure.

I wanted to share a link with you that you might find interesting. Yesterday was the feast of the great doctor of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas. The school I attend is named for him and is staffed by the Order of Preachers, fellow Dominicans brothers of the great Saint. So, as you might expect, we had a large celebratory feast day - complete with Archbishop Di Noia, Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. That's a hefty title and not a bad person to have celebrate Mass for you! This link is from my choir director at school (I sang in the choir yesterday!) and offers a brief blurb on the feast and a small slideshow of pictures. In one of them, you can see my head... haha, although, I don't think you'd necessarily know it was me.
http://www.op-stjoseph.org/blog/feast_of_saint_thomas_aquinas

After looking at those few pictures and seeing the stunning Angelicum Church and the Archbishop, I just had a momentary insight as to what I get to participate in while I'm here. Sometimes I don't realize the beauty and gravity of it and for some reason these pictures grounded me in that reality. This is my life! Some of my teachers work for the Pope, talking to him on a regular basis. Often the men who celebrate Mass for me are Cardinals... the Princes of the Church! It is a rich beauty, a delight, a joy. Somehow I am in a world of ancient ruins, Church Princes, stunning Renaissance and Baroque art, relics of the great holy men and women who walked these very streets and died upon them...

If you think of it, pray for me over these next two weeks. This stretch will be difficult, mentally and physically taxing. Thanks! Enjoy the pictures!

+ E