Can you believe it? A new blog post! Surprise, surprise!! It has been three weeks since my last post – and quite a busy three weeks they have been! Time just seems to be flying by. Over the next several weeks there is still so much to be done – reading and writing for final projects and papers; reading and writing in preparation for my trip to Canada (November 28 – December 3); preparation for worship on December 6^th (the day the service at Smithville is being recorded for submission with my commissioning paperwork); completion of my commissioning paperwork; organization and implementation of Advent and Christmas worship services; and other general church “stuff.” Although a tad bit stressful, these are exciting times for me.

I am very much looking forward to my trip to Canada in two weeks. The recipients of the Georgia Harkness Scholarship are traveling to Halifax, Nova Scotia to participate in a Global Women’s Leadership Development program. On this trip we will experience a brief immersion in Canadian culture, dialogue with seminary students at the Atlantic School of Theology, have sessions with clergywomen there, and visit various ministry sites. Women’s ordination in Canada is still rare, and we will have an opportunity to share our call stories with women there.

In preparation for this experience, we had to do some writing about our expectations of the trip. One of the questions I was asked to answer involved who I would like to accompany me on this trip. My response was that I would love to bring a whole entourage of women with me! Specifically, I would love to bring three of my clergy role models and mentors with me (Karen Devaisher, Alice Ann Bonham, and Betty Ann Garret). These women have been a tremendous source of encouragement to me on my journey toward ordained ministry. I would also love to bring some of my seminary professors with me (Robin Knowles Wallace, Lisa Withrow, and Diane Lobody) as they all have an interest in women’s studies and would be fun companions and dialogue partners on this journey – particularly Diane. As a historian, I would love to watch her engage in this process. I would also love to bring along my mother and some of my friends and classmates, as I think they would also benefit from this experience. And this may sound odd, but if time and location were not a barrier, I would love to bring some of my United Methodist foremothers with me – women like Georgia Harkness herself (and others like Anna Howard Shaw, Anna Oliver and Frances Willard) who forged the way for women in ministry.

I look forward to writing more about this in the weeks ahead. Until next time, peace …