Springtime

This was a long week. My Legal Research and Writing brief, worth 50% percent of my grade, was due yesterday. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep the past couple of days--especially since I had spent the prior weekend anticipating and celebrating Easter, rather than writing. To top things off, today we had a make-up Criminal Justice class, which meant that my schedule went as follows: Contracts, 9:00 - 11:00 am; Criminal Justice, 11:10 - 1:00 pm; Property, 1:20 - 3:20 pm. Ouch. Plus, all three classes were in the same lecture hall! What a day.

When I emerged from room 207 after six hours of lecture, it was absolutely gorgeous outside! 70 and not a cloud in the sky. I dropped off my stuff at my apartment, grabbed my camera, and went on an adventure to the National Cathedral on a whim. Here are a few of my favorite photos from the visit (or, see the whole album):

Flying buttresses!

The front of the National Cathedral.

The Space Window, honoring man landing on the Moon.

Cats, birds, and squirrels?!

Now, I have to apologize in advance for what I'm about to write. As I was walking through the beautiful neighborhood near the National Cathedral, admiring the front yards of the houses, I couldn't help myself but to write a poem. Yeah, I know--what could be more cliché than an English major writing a poem inspired by flowers in bloom in spring? Nevertheless, I thought I'd share. (It is my blog, after all.)

The nameless flowers of my youth
Were not quite such as these:
No daffodils in my backyard;
No tulips made me sneeze.

At home, the plants did bloom year-round
In gold and white and blue.
But here, the flowers come and go;
They know not what to do.

And, what about the purple trees
That line some D.C. streets?
I know that they won't last for long--
For now, they're quite a treat.

I yearn for spring in Sunnyvale,
Yet stay, to my chagrin.
But, I'll be back before too long
For springtime's fervid twin.

I was just on C-SPAN!

I WAS JUST ON C-SPAN! So cool! Last month, Catholic Forum, along with several other student groups on campus, put on an event called Faith on the Hill, which was a panel discussion with the House and Senate chaplains. It started out as a small idea, but quickly blossomed into a quite large event with media coverage. C-SPAN finally aired their footage of the event this evening. I can be seen right at the beginning, walking in at the last second because I was handing out programs at the door, and then I'm full-screen at 28:15:


AAAAA! I was on C-SPAN! I... I have nothing else to say.

EDIT: I'm also in the shot when Sr. Dorinda (sitting on my right) asks a question.

Let It Rise

Let the glory of the Lord rise among us.
Let the glory of the Lord rise among us.
Let the glory of the Lord rise among us.
Let us rise. Oh, oh, let it rise...

Today, there was a little taste of Berkeley-style campus ministry here at Georgetown, because Catholic Forum, in conjunction with the Christian Legal Society and Campus Ministry, organized our first-annual Easter Brunch! I'm going to be on leadership for Catholic Forum next year, so I volunteered to coordinate the event. I was impressed by how things turned out: we had over 75 people in attendance, tons of food, and the whole thing went off without a hitch. Fr. Alexei even made a lamb out of butter! (Apparently, butter lambs are a Polish Easter tradition.) I'm glad that I got a chance to learn the ropes of Georgetown's student organization bureaucracy this semester, rather than having to figure it all out next semester after this year's leadership graduates.

About 16 of us walked over to St. Aloysius Church from school for Easter Mass this morning before the brunch. (We didn't have Mass here on campus because our chapel congregation is so small.) I had never been to the church before, but I liked it! They had a great gospel choir, and a very lively congregation (e.g., much clapping, calling out of "Amen!"). It really warmed my heart to see so many of us walking to Mass together this morning--especially a few people that don't normally attend Mass at our little chapel. It gives me hope for next year's ministry, in spite of such wonderful people graduating, and the lack of interest in some of the more spiritually-oriented (as opposed to social) events that Catholic Forum has put on this year. Alleluia!