The Truth About Reading Week

March 14, 2005

Here at Columbia Seminary, we are lucky enough to have a reading week for mid-terms, a spring break in April, and another reading week for finals. Reading week is a new phenomenon for me. In college we had reading days, which conveniently enough were always Saturday and Sunday between the last day of classes and the first day of exams. As if Saturday and Sunday were not already reading days.

So, a full week of no classes dedicated just to reading is this gift dropped down from heaven as far as I’m concerned. Or at least it was last semester. Last semester I had one paper due during reading week and that was it – it was really, truly a week for reading.

This semester, life is a little different. I had three papers due at the end of last week to get me ready for reading week (that was fun). This week I have one fairly large project due Friday, a mid-term Thursday and a set of journal entries (think 45 entries) due by Sunday evening. Not to mention I have to preach next Thursday, so sermon work.

On top of studying and researching for the exam and the paper, I have to catch up on the reading I’m behind on (because let’s face it, life doesn’t allow much time for reading during a normal week on top of papers due and work study and sleeping and exercising so as not to completely implode and counseling and phone calls and friend time and the unexpected, lovely visits from out of town people, etc), and I have four meetings scheduled, one lunch, one dinner and two afternoons of work study.

My reading week is more full than a normal week. And to look at the reading that is supposed to be done for Monday (not just the old reading to catch up on, but new assignments), well, it’s enough to make seriously question their sanity for choosing to go back to school.

This is all to say that I am deeply disillusioned by Reading Week, as I am equally disillusioned by most of my classes this semester. When classes become a means to an end, more hoops to jump through, I get very sad – and unmotivated. Fortunately, there is still a beer left in my fridge and Black Eyed Peas on my iPod and sunshine outside and time carved out for yoga. So, it’s life and I never accomplish as much as I wish I would – but there are better priorities than productivity.

Reading week. Sigh. Maybe spring break will be better? Spring break will definitely be better.

Posted in school by Sarah Walker Cleaveland