Another chapter in my life is closed.  Today was my last day in CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education).  Whenever I think “well, that wasn’t long at all,” I put it in context by remembering that my hospital internship started the Monday after Heidi’s and my honeymoon in September.

A month ago my supervisors checked in with the group of interns and asked if we were getting sad because our time was coming to an end.  I said no because I was really looking forward to “time off,” or, at least time not spent in an internship.  Now that I’m done, I already know I’ll miss much.  I’ll miss my group mates (Conner, Leah, Kifah, Robin and Ben).  I’ll miss my supervisors and the great hospital staff (Rosi, Ron and Kevin) who I’d see almost every shift.  And I’ll miss the regular practice of praying with hospital patients.  Those visits will probably never happen as often as I go forward in life; even as a congregational minister I doubt I’ll pray in hospital rooms like I did this year.  

Today I turned in my badge and threw away my shoes.  Those shoes have been through a lot (as their guts illustrate).  I bought those shoes in Ft. Worth the day before Daryl Schmidt’s memorial service at TCU almost 3 years ago.  All of my dress clothes were back home in Iowa, so I went to the local Men’s Wearhouse and bought a new suit and shoes.  They’ve lasted a long time.  Those shoes endured through an intensive summer of conferences and conventions, through two internships, and through traveling around 15 states.