People often ask me what I actually do all week. 'Like, is being a Chaplain the cushiest job ever? Do you just float around and chat to people and run the odd Bible Study?' No.
This week I was blessed to have a work experience student with me, so I thought I would challenge myself to record everything I do for one whole week and then publish it for all the world to see. Thanks for inspiring this idea Amelia, from Shelford Girls' Grammar!
Honestly, there is nearly no such thing as a standard week in this job and this was no exception, because our students were entering their study week. This meant that all of the programs I usually run for students weren't on, and my usual late nights weren't as late. But anyway, without anymore justification, here was my stripped back week, laid bare for the world to see ...
I guess this is the poetry of my everyday life ...
Monday - Queen's Birthday Public Holiday
This year we headed to Warburton with old friends and had a picnic by the river. Freezing, but nice.
Tuesday
5.30am - Wake up, make a cup of tea and spend time with God. These two things literally go together for me, most days.
6.30pm - Go for a run. Today doing a small fast, as part of my routine, so no breakfast.
8am - Get into the office and try to clear my in-tray and in-box before the day gets underway. Achieve about 30% of this.
9am - Morning Prayer. Life at College has elements of the monastic. The bells ring each morning at 9am and we pray through the Daily Office. Today I am leading.
9.30am - Take my work experience student to the cafe on campus for hot chocolate and chats. How is school going? What would you like to get out of your time with me this week?
10am - Head to the office on a different campus and start working on this week's tasks, including preparations for celebrating Eid al Fitr, which is significant to many of our students and staff.
11am - Head down to our third campus to meet with the Manager of Student Welfare
11.30am - At this moment I have a scheduled a half hour to pray for staff and students at College, go over my notebook and ask God to speak to me about strategy, priorities and where to focus my time and energy this week. I then plan my time accordingly. This is a weekly discipline.
12noon - Back to the office to start planning an excursion for students.
1pm - Eat lunch and check emails again. Pause to email Supervisor about progress on PhD proposal. Buy cake for person who I know is having a hard time at the moment and deliver with card.
1.30pm - Brief meeting to discuss student orientation program.
2pm - Phone call from the lovely Fr Thinh, the Catholic Chaplain at Melbourne University, who asks me, 'Can you do weddings? Can you do one for a couple this July?' Answer is "yes", but, "no", because I'll be away. Keep working through the to-do-list.
5pm - Head home.
5.15pm - Arrive home to bath and dinner routine with my daughter.
7.30pm - The Leadership Team from our Church arrive for our weekly Leadership Huddle, which combines coaching with prayer support.
10.10pm - Last person leaves. I hug Adam and tell him I love him and promptly collapse into bed.
Spontaneous conversations about spiritual stuff today - 3
Surprises today - I discover that I need to learn Latin if I want to pursue this PhD, Yikes!
Wednesday
5.30am - Wake up, make a cup of tea, get into the Bible.
6.30am - Cuddle daughter profusely who is starting to stir after, yet again, crawling into our bed during the night (this is becoming a habit of late).
7am - Head over to a prayer meeting at PlanetShakers Church, because I promised some members of my team that I would visit sometime (seriously impressive turnout of some 400 people).
8am - Quick cup of tea with my team and then off to a conference.
9am - Full Staff Conference today at the RACV Centre. Amelia and I are at Table 6, which turns out to be a serious riot!! We laugh a lot and chew the fat about some serious stuff.
3.30pm - Head back into the city to buy decorations for Eid al Fitr. Then grab some lap top time in a cafe and smash some work out.
6.30pm - Arrive home, eat dinner and have phone conversation with sister.
7pm - Adam walks in with Mary asleep in his arms after her gymnastics class. He has another meeting to get to now, so I give him a kiss that doubles up as my 'high five, I'm in your corner, and I still love you even though we have barely seen each other for two days. Go do your thing. I'm fine. Team Cetrangolo!'
7.30pm - Talk on the phone with one of my besty friends.
9pm - Should get an early night but feeling a burden to pray. Spend time talking and singing to God in my pyjamas.
10.30pm - Adam's home. Bed time.
Spontaneous conversations about spiritual stuff today - at least 3
Surprises today - Danced the Waltz with a Maths teacher. Spontaneously bore my soul to the entire staff. Cool, why not?
Thursday
5.30am - Alarm rings. Hit snooze.
6am - Yep, decide I will get up and have prayer time. Mary stirs early and joins me on the couch with her journal and textas. She decides to have journalling time with me. Cute.
8am - Arrive at work and spend some time answering emails and jotting down some key points to mention at morning tea for new parents.
9am - Attend morning tea for new parents and give brief presentation.
10am - Head down to third campus to pick up food for Eid al Fitr.
10.30am - Pause for morning tea and workshop video for upcoming student orientation. Start working on new Chaplaincy page for the TCOLE online learning system.
12.45pm - Head to Melbourne University subject expo. Pick up fairy lights from storage space.
1.30pm - Break for lunch.
2pm - Start setting up Eid al Fitr decorations.
3pm - Spontaneous pastoral meeting with staff member.
4.30pm - Head off to get an eye test, because I lost my prescription sunglasses and must get them replaced before heading overseas for a conference in three weeks.
5.05pm - Arrive at optometrist to be told that arriving 5 minutes late means I have to reschedule. The next time they can do is 6.30pm. My heart sinks because if I do that, it will be the second night in a row that Mary won't see me before falling asleep. I can see the man at the optometrist is massively under the pump, so I decide to cut him some slack and come back later. Grab a coffee and work at lap top.
5.30pm - I hear the words, "Excuse me miss? Could you spare some change? I don't have enough money for dinner." Sure. Strike up conversation with man who needs dinner and end up telling each other stories from our lives for an hour. Think to myself, 'I see what you're doing here God. This is where I was meant to be right now ... okay, I get it ...' We pray for each other. Special.
6.30pm - Get eyes tested. Very nice man at the optometrist tells me I have great taste when I choose my glasses. 'Thanks! You have great style too!'
8pm - Arrive home to husband who has cleaned the house, made dinner and lit candles in the apartment. I'm starting to think that marrying this guy is the single bloody smartest thing I have ever done.
Spontaneous conversations about spiritual stuff today - 3
Surprises today - I'm reminded that our social welfare system doesn't cover all cracks.
Friday
5.30am - Wake up, make tea, read Bible, talk to God.
6.30am - Go for a run.
8am - Head to office to hit some task management.
9am - Attend Morning Prayer. Finish setting up Eid decorations.
10am - Meeting with Marketing.
11.30am - Pastoral appointment with staffer.
12.30pm - Let work experience student have a lunch break and head back to office.
1.30pm - Work on plans for The Peace Builders Conference and proposed upgrades to audiovisual facilities in the Chapel.
2pm - Finish Eid al Fitr brochures and head home for quick catch up with Mary.
3.30pm - Head out to South Yarra to catch up with the Chair of the Board, because he's a total legend, to share how I'm travelling in my new job and get some advice on a third supervisor for a PhD. This ends up being a blessed conversation about more than strategic planning. We talk about our experiences of growing up in church, the influence of our Dads and what we have learned about spiritual leadership along the way.
5.30pm - Head home for Date Night, except that it appears Adam has come down with a virus and is feeling pretty close to Man Flu. Love up on family tonight.
Spontaneous conversations about spiritual stuff today - 2
Surprises today - I learn that I need to listen more and be prepared to answer questions. It's sad to admit, but for a lot of people, the only experience they have of Christians or church is negative, even highly damaging. That's not my fault, but it does mean that I can't expect people to trust me straight away. Trust is always earned and it might take time.
Weekend
Adam and Mary have a pyjama day on Saturday in the wake of serious sickness. After a day of making chicken soup, baking, doing puzzles and monitoring nurofen dosages, I head out with a friend to a prayer night and then dinner at a seriously nice Italian restaurant. I get home at 1am. Husband still sick but somewhat amused at my late night out. "Did you have a good time?", he mutters with a half-asleep smile. Yep.
Sunday is a full day of church, followed by a ballerina birthday party for one of Mary's kinder buddies. After a jam-packed day of being with people, I sit up prepping materials for a Student Orientation Day at work on Monday.
