Acorns: A Story

Another acorn --a bit more of a story...

I nearly missed my train stop on Saturday morning as I was reading an old journal entry. I was taking a moment to look back at a list I had made. Kind of an "honorable mention" list. People and experiences I had been so thankful for over the past year.

I laughed as I read John's name and that "I [would] forever love him for his tangents about the Twins, snatching food out of my hand and sprawling his entire body across my desk".

I had written that I was thankful for Josh at Missio Dei for "being the voice of God speaking reason and joy". I was thankful for my dear friends for being my community & for challenging me, to my family who doesn't always understand my day-to-day life, but loving me unconditionally.

I stopped as I was reading this list because I couldn't remember Maureen's last name. How could I not remember the last name of the woman who played such an influential and empowering role in my life last year at this time. It was on the tip of my tongue.

But I had to get off the train, because I had an open house to get to.

I walked into Loyola's Corboy Law Center (no, I'm not looking at law school, I'm considering this program) and went straight to the 15th floor. I was a bit late and didn't know what the format would be like for this open house (an open house that I wasn't quite sure was worth going to). I grabbed a folder, made a name tag, helped myself to a cup of coffee and sat down at a table next to a woman named Tiffany. I scanned the room, I was one of the younger ones there, there were more women than I expected, and I was glad I wore a skirt, I thought I had maybe over dressed. My eye caught Susan, yes Dr. Rans, and I momentarily felt as if I were sitting in her Metropolitan Seminar at the Chicago Semester building nearly 4 years earlier.

Then sure enough, another familiar face. It was Maureen, the woman who was on my list -- whose last name I couldn't remember. And there she was at the front of the room with her full name in large print on the projector screen as one of the panelists.

I was a little dumb-founded and probably had a smile on my face, the kind where my jaw is slightly dropped because I am not even aware of my own expression.

It was in that moment I was so glad that something, whatever it was, got me out the door and to that open house on an early Saturday morning. This was enough for me to know I was meant to be there.