I came across a wonderful little blog by a commercial photographer the other day–what I love about it is that he gives us little glimpses of his life, not the nitty-gritty of a shoot or his lighting techniques or equipment reviews. He simply bears just a little bit of his soul as he writes about what it is like to be him: a photographer, father, and artist.

 See it here: http://thomasbroening.blogspot.com/

I mention it because I should aspire to such blog writing feats. Or maybe I could at least just update this more than once every two months.

I do want to say that CPE Unit 2 (of 4) was finished last week. That means I’m halfway done with my CPE residency! It’s 1) incredible exciting that I’ve made it this far 2) motivating to think I’m not going to have this program in 6 months, so I’d better use the time wisely in units 3 and 4. It will be back to the “real world” all too soon. Though after this, seminary is going to be like cruising in a convertable on a mid-summer’s day.

Grant :: Feb.24.2008 :: CPE, blog, life update :: No Comments »

As Robin alluded to on her blog, I’m doing a full-time year-long Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) residency this year. It’s a rather intense way to fulfill my field education requirement for seminary, but it’s also makes room for deep learning about my personal pastoral ministry and presence.

CPE is a nationally accredited program. Each unit lasts about 3 months, so I’ll be doing 4 units over the course of a whole year. It’s both scary and a wonderful growing opportunity because a lot of the curriculum involves giving and receiving direct and honest feedback about my personal presence and interpersonal relating. In other words, my fellow residents and the supervisor(s) are up front with what they think about me and the work I’m doing, and I’m expected to do the same for them. Ever wanted to know deep down what other people really think of you and notice about you? This is the place to learn.

If the advantage of being a resident is the learning opportunity, the disadvantage is they work you to near death for a pretty meager stipend. I’m really just happy to be getting paid, but at the end of 60-80 hour week (plus commuting back and forth to SF every day), I’m just plain tired. It’s a quick way to learn how to prioritize what renews and energizes me.

The hospital I’m working at is St. Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco. It’s interesting for a couple of reasons. First, although it’s part of Catholic Healthcare West, it’s historically a community hospital that was later adopted into the Catholic healthcare system, so it has a mixed history. Second, it’s smack in between the poorest of the poor and the richest of the rich in San Francisco (the Tenderloin and Knob Hill). Chinatown is right next door too. The hospital’s patient population approximately reflects these populations pretty evenly. For doing chaplaincy work, I don’t think there could be a more dynamic place.

Grant :: Oct.08.2007 :: CPE, life update :: 3 Comments »