School Daze :)

Good Monday morning to you all! I should be working on schoolwork, and I promise I will be soon, but I thought I'd write a blog and catch you up on what's happening with school so far. I'm just past the halfway point in the semester, which is kind of cool. I finished my first class this past Thursday night (YAY!!!) and start a new class this Thursday. Here is a rundown on each class and what I am learning...

*My Tuesday night class is a counseling skills class. We are learning all sorts of important skills on how to counsel people well - asking questions, reflecting back what they have said, observing body language, etc. We have been put in triads, and each week we practice counseling each other with what we are learning. Each time you are in your triad, someone is the counselor, someone is the client, and someone is the observer. We spend about 5 minutes at a time in a "session", and then we switch roles. I've really enjoyed this so far. After reading so much about counseling, it's fun to actually get to try it. It's also cool how much you learn about yourself and your own personal style in watching others counsel. Even though there are skills to learn, it is also emphasized that counseling has to be authentic and real. I love this because each person is a different type of counselor, just based on personality and such. I am definitely learning a lot about myself through this experience.

*My first Thursday night class was a foundations of counseling class where we learned about the history of counseling - where we've come from, how we got where we are, and where we're going. We talked a lot about worldviews and the importance of knowing who you are and what you believe. On the last night, we had to do a group presentation, showing a movie clip that portrayed a worldview we were presenting. My group used the movie Napolean Dynamite, and we even did a little dance. Here's a picture of my group...

*My next Thursday night class is on theories of counseling, and we will be learning about the various theoretical orientations that are used in counseling. I think this will be an interesting class to take. It will be slightly weird at first because we will have a different professor. We've had the same professor for the first two classes, and now it is time to branch out! I'll share more about this class as I get into it.

*Overall, this program should take me about 2 1/2 years to complete. It's going by quickly though! I can't believe it's about to be November already. So far this semester, I have read hundreds of pages in books, written and turned in 4 papers (one that was 20 pages!) and completed one group project. Not bad while also working full time! I have A LOT more work to do to finish out the semester, but I'm trying to take things one day at a time and not worry too much about it. I'm trying to stay really organized and still have fun every now and then, but I'm mostly just working and doing school stuff.

*One thing that is making school even more awesome is that my classmates and I are really starting to connect. Friendships are growing, we are hanging out some together, and we are having a blast. Having that community makes everything better, and I am so thankful that I am getting to share this adventure with some amazing people.

*Finally, going to school is just continuing the healing process in me. I am learning that in order to be a good counselor, you have to know yourself really well and work through your own stuff before you can be much help to another. I have already begun this process by being in counseling this last year, but everything is continuing to be refined and I am being challenged and stretched even more through my classes and interactions there. It is not always fun, but it's good, and I am thankful for the work that God continues to do in my life as He prepares me for what He has for me to do.

So there you have an update on school! I must go get some work done before heading to work for the evening. Have a great week!