This weekend, I officially received my Masters degree in Pastoral Theology from the Augustine Institute. The road to my degree began six years ago when I received a scholarship for Catholic school teachers. My studies while I was teaching were rich and fruitful. Each week, I raced like a mad woman to class , exhausted after teaching all day, leaving piles of papers to grade and lesson plans for the weekend. I left class each week renewed and invigorated, often using my notes from lecture in class the next day to lead discussion, answer student questions, or plant seeds for future topics. 
However , after I quit working to stay home with the girls, my academic experience (now via distance education) was another experience entirely. Rather than invigorated by class discussion or applying my class notes immediately, I now finished my study time wondering when I would ever have the chance to go back to work and whether the whole experience was time wasted. Still, my strong husband encouraged me to complete the degree, and my perseverence prevailed. Finally, in May 2012, I graduated proudly!
The Graduation Mass was a beautiful reminder and inspirational experience. Cardinal Stafford travelled from Rome to celebrate the Mass. I was able to meet several of the distance students from acound the country who, like me, had been balancing a variety of pressures around our online class discussions and lecture. Reconnecting with my classmates and professors renewed my interest in The New Evangelization and reminded me of my hope for growing the Church not only in our home but also in ministry of some kind. I now begin a discernment about how this is best done. Between homeschooling, mothers minstry, Confirmation / Religious education, marriage preparation, and children's nursery, my interest in evangelization continues only to grow. May the Lord bless me with the clarity and patience to wait on His call for me and respond with loving joy.
