my journey (so far) – Jeffrey A. Nelson

A Conversation Under the Arch

This short piece was a doctoral assignment. It is a joint response to Tracy K. Smith’s Life on Mars and Brian Doyle’s “Joyas Voladoras.” As I enter the museum, I am immediately struck by how quiet it is. It’s a weekday, I remind myself, so I probably should have expected the low-key atmosphere. I take time toContinue reading “A Conversation Under the Arch”

School Haiku

These are a few haiku that I jotted down during my doctoral class week in June: First doctoral courseLectern sits behind the profThe crest is crooked Morning before classChair yoga held in our roomI should have slept in Keurig at the backThey’ve provided dark roast podsI’m on my fourth cup

I Stepped Away to Spend More Time with My Classwork

On the second to last class day of my doctoral intensive week at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in June, every student was given a blue Post-It note. The assignment was for us to list three things about ourselves without including our names, and then to stick them on a large writing pad set on an easel.Continue reading “I Stepped Away to Spend More Time with My Classwork”