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A Publication of the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Community
May 8, 2009 Issue #182
Kairos
© 2009 Austin PresbyterianTheological Seminary
Inside This Issue
Announcements & Events . . . 2Letter from the
New
Editor . . . 3A Final Will . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3Self Assessment . . . . . . . 4Reception for Andy. . . . . . 5Commencement Info. . . 6-7What I Learned In Seminary Today . . . 8Weekly Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
By Stella Burkhalter, MDiv Senior 
There’s a last time for everything - a last time youlay sleepless in bed on Christmas Eve night because youreally believed Santa was going to land on your rooftopany minute, or a last time you and your friends tried tostay up all night at a sleepover. The problem is, you don’tusually know it’s the last time.This was the point of a story in an e-mail some-one forwarded to me a long time ago. I could kick myself for not saving it – it’s long gone – but the memory of it willstay with me forever. The author wrote about the last timehe laid on the back dashboard of the car looking up at thestars in the night sky as his parents drove down a darkhighway. I remember doing that. He wrote about the lasttime his son fell asleep on the couch and he carried himto his bed. My kids are too big to carry like that now, too,and I’m so sorry I didn’t know I was carrying them for thelast time when I carried them for the last time. I wouldhave lingered in the dark room and smelled her hair or buried my face in the space between his little shoulder and cheek. On second thought, maybe it’s better I didn’tknow.A lot of last times are like that. We take specialcare to commemorate certain last times. We wrap cere-monies around them and shed tears. Maybe some lasttimes come and go without us knowing because our soulswould be too torn up if we had to grieve the loss of them.I’m thinking about last times, of course, becauseschool is almost done for the year. I’m a senior, but I’mnot graduating, so I get to watch others grieve and marktheir last times with caps and gowns and engraved invita-tions. The friends who crowded into the bus bound for TexLake with me, who sat and listened to Stan Hall’ssong of the day with me, who wrinkled their faces andtried to fathom Cindy’s lectures with me, will be movingon. Most of them anyway. A few will walk with me in2010 and we’ll feel very mature and mysterious, swoop-ing in for the big day. The others will politely include us intheir parties and slide shows, offer us cake with the frost-ing that turns your tongue blue, but we won’t really bepart of them. Maybe it’s more merciful this way.The problem with knowing I won’t be aroundmuch next year is that I don’t know how many last timeshave come and gone without my notice. Have I alreadyhad the last time sitting on the Stotts patio reading in thesunshine for an hour? Have I already had the last timesome stranger asks me what I do and I proudly replied,“graduate student,” imagining myself in a tweed coat withpatches on the elbows. Have I already had the last time Iplopped my backpack on the chair at my favorite lunchtable and tried to figure out how we could possibly betalking about bacon and guitars and English literature andthe Presbyterian call system all at the same time? Have Ialready had the last time I snuck back to the room off thealtar in the chapel to see if a friend needed to pray beforepreaching? Have I already had the last time I pausedbefore climbing those steep stairs between the vine-covered walls because even after years of being here, itstill makes me breathless with gratitude that I get to be?Have I already had the last time I dropped to the bluecouch in McMillan to join the others who finished their exams so we could compare notes? Have I already hadthe last time I stopped by a professor’s office for five min-utes and ended up staying forty-five? Have I alreadyhad the last time I crumbled to a bench on campus andlet the tears flow while someone put an arm around meand a little crowd gathered around to just love me? Whendid I cross that threshold? Why didn’t anyone warn me?My brother died in 2001. I don’t remember thelast time I saw him. I don’t remember what we did or what we talked about. It was too ordinary to matter. I’veoften wished I could have one more last time with him,but it’s probably for the best. I would hang on too tightly,it would hurt too much. Some last times are like that.
 
 
www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.htmlIssue 182 Page 2
Chapel ScheduleReading Week
Contemplative Worship
On Tuesday, May 12,Still Small Voice will lead acontemplative worship servicein the chapel at 8pm. ContactMargaret Talbot for moreinformation.
Mark your calendars!
Baccalaureate
Sat., May 236:00 p.m.
Commencement
Sun., May 242:30 p.m.Both Events Will Be Held AtUniversity Presbyterian ChurchSee pages 3 and 4for more information.
Commencement
 C  o r  n  e r 
Student Volunteers Needed!
 Student volunteers are needed Saturday,May 23rd and Sunday, May 24th to assist with theAnderson House Dedication Ceremony, Baccalaure-ate, and the Graduation Commencement Cere-mony. Responsibilities will include directing traffic,guiding Anderson House tours, ushering guests, etc.If interested, contact Chris Kreisher atchris.kreisher@austinseminary.edu 
Art Display in the Library
The Stitt Library has a display of the art workof Austin artist, Joan Salvant. It is Voices from theWalls: a Celebration of the Art and Architecture of Shelton Chapel. Ten beautiful watercolor versionsof different symbols found in the chapel are in thedisplay case along with an explanation of the loca-tion of the symbol in the chapel and its meaning.Take time from the hectic pace of the ending of thesemester and come enjoy this art. Contact person:Lila Parrish, x4878
 
Anderson House Dedicationand Open House
Saturday, May 23
rd
– All are welcome to attend the AndersonHouse Dedication Open House from 12noon ‘til 3pm. We will havetours of the Anderson House, free lunch, music by Ben Dubois, andmuch more. Come relax, fellowship, and just hang out! It is re-quested that you RSVP as soon as possible torsvp@austinseminary.edu 
Ben Dubois, shown here providing live music for this year’s Spring Flung, will also entertain us at the Anderson House DedicationCeremony.
Meet the Peeps
 
A Community Open House
Sunday, May 17th, “Meet the Peeps”: ACommunity Open House, 3pm-5pm at Hicks Com-munity House. Our new Vice President for StudentAffairs and Vocation, Jackie Saxon, would like toinformally meet and greet students and their fami-lies. Light refreshments will be served and everyoneis welcome! Hope to see you there!
 
 
www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.htmlIssue 181 Page 3
 
www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.htmlIssue 182 Page 3
A Letter from the New Editor 
To the student body, staff and faculty of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary:First let me express my sincere gratitude, honor and privilege in being named the next
Kairos
edi-tor. I look forward to the challenges and excitement it will evoke in my senior year of academics.Second, I want to sincerely thank Paul Dubois for his commitment, patience, and leadershipshown in this past year’s publication. From a personal standpoint, I am indebted to his willingnessto edit, not just for grammatically mistakes, but also for comprehension. As I wrote my
Reflectionson Identity 
, Paul invested time, effort and a desire to fully comprehend what I wanted to portray. Itwas a pleasure to work with him and it was honor to have his insight.I also appreciated Paul’s weekly pieces on “What I learned in Seminary Today.” It is sometimesdifficult to be vulnerable and scholarly, yet Paul balanced both very well. Paul – I am blessed tohave worked with you and I hope your ministry continues to grow and shape you.Paul has left me big shoes to fill and I hope and pray that this next academic year 
you
, the stu-dent body, can help me fulfill those shoes. I may be dreaming big, but I hope to set goals and ac-complish them in the 2009-2010 academic year. These include:
•
An invitation for every student to write at least
once
for Kairos.
•
Complete coverage of our sports teams & community life.
•
Reflections from Seniors
•
Transitions experienced by Middlers
•
Introductions of JuniorsI am open to new ideas and creativity! So if you are interested in helping write, take pictures, re-port or have ideas of your own, please feel free to contact me by e-mail atmaryelizabeth.prentice@austinseminary.eduor kairos@austinseminary.edu. Blessings during reading week and congratulations to all of those graduating!Mary Elizabeth Prentice
Kairos
Editor, 2009-2010
A Final Will
From Megan Dosher and Margaret Talbot
 Dear friends,This is our last will and testament, to all of you who aren't graduating and haven't yet discovered thesecret for yourself. You won't read it in the student handbook; your committee members and denominationalpowers won't tell you; your advisor might or might not let you in on it. We attest to you: You HAVE to have
TH237
,
Theology & Hermeneutics
, before you leave Austin Seminary. This course IS required!* We leavethe secret knowledge of this required course to your care. Take advantage of it. We hope you love it, as wehave.
* in our estimation—and we know there are others who agree (like the editor who allowed this to be published)
 
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