Reflections on Where I Am: Hobbies and Writing
Reflections and a Personal Adventure into a New Hobby...
Reflections on Where I Am...
“What do you like to do for fun?” and “What are some of your favorite hobbies?” are two of my least favorite questions to answer.
I usually respond by fumbling through a generic list of hobbies that any decent person would enjoy. Reading. Hanging with friends. Watching movies. I am immediately reminded that I do not have any hobbies that I enjoy or meaningfully look forward to doing. Admittedly, this lack is because I have been a professional student all of my adult life.
Well, friends, I am no longer a student.
I am about five months removed from graduating from Divinity School, and five months into my new “career” as a pastor (I know, still a wild thought to me, too). Transitionally, the greatest hurdle has been learning who I am outside of being a student. Most of my life—from grade school to grad school—has been built around the structures and rhythms of formal education.
Now, I am in a season of learning who I am without the rigid structure of school and the demands and comforts (maybe I can unpack this on a different post) of being a student. I am learning who I am, what I enjoy doing, what I want to do and gifts I want to cultivate. Alas, here we are.
This blog is an act of faith in cultivating my writing craft through exploring a new hobby.
I remember vividly being in Mrs. Hollenshead’s third-grade homeroom class. I would write short fiction essays at home and give them to her. (Sidenote: Most of my character’s names would be Dallas Cowboys players circa early/mid-2000s lol). Though I was a timid and quiet kid (shocking, I know), Mrs. Hollenshead would have me read them in front of the class. Although I was terrified, I never felt more alive. All that to say, I have always enjoyed writing.
As a student, I wrote because I had to, but now, I write because I want to.
I can’t promise I will write weekly, bi-weekly, or even monthly. Shoot. I can’t even promise there will be another post after this one. I have no strategy or plan in place. Nevertheless, I am taking a stab at this. And, maybe…just maybe, one day, writing will be a hobby of mine.
Until next time.
SH
What am I Reading?
Eric Barreto interviews Willie James Jennings, “Belonging” in The Presbyterian Outlook, (published: March 29, 2023).
James Clear, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones (Avery, 2016).
Meg Jay, The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter--And How to Make the Most of Them Now (Twelve, 2021).
Esau McCaulley, How Far to the Promised Land: One Black Family's Story of Hope and Survival in the American South (Convergent Books, 2023) — PREORDER THIS!
What am I Watching?
Ted Lasso (Season 3, Apple TV)
The Diplomat (Netflix)
What am I Listening To?
“Esau McCaulley Makes Grace Plausible” (The Russell Moore Show)
“What Do We Do Now? Trauma and Faith” (The Healing Circle Podcast with Kobe Campbell)
“What Happened to Historian Molly Worthen?” (Gospel Bound with Collin Hansen)