Christian Scholars' Conference 2010

Christian Scholars’ Conference 2010 Beauty in the Academy: Faith, Scholarship and the Arts

June 3-5, 2010

Lipscomb University, Nashville, Tennessee

I've really got to get back to work!

Since the semester's been over, I've been doing two things: landscaping (pictures coming soon) and reading for pleasure. But now, it's time to get back to work, at least for a little while. I'm presenting in two different panels at this year's Christian Scholars' Conference:

Paper and Panel Session I:

Mark A. Elrod, Harding University, Convener: “Social Networking and Christian Education”

• Jeff Baker, Thomas Goode Jones School of Law School: Panelist

• Edward Carson, Houston Christian High School: Panelist

• Stephanie Eddleman, Harding University: Panelist

• Michael Lasley, Pepperdine University: Panelist

• Jim Miller, Harding University: Panelist

Paper and Panel Session III

Larry Long, Harding University, Convener: “Beauty, Goodness and Value in the Anglo-American Literary Tradition”

• Leland Ryken, Wheaton College: “Valuing What God Values: The Persistence of Beauty in Christian Aesthetics”

• Stephanie Eddleman, Harding University: “Physical Beauty in Jane Austen: The Intersection of Aesthetics and Faith”

• John Williams, Harding University: “’The Light by Which You See’: John Updike’s Antinomian Aesthetics”

Most of the work's already done (it's nice to get a little extra mileage out of that dissertation), but I've got some revising and editing to do. I'm really looking forward to this conference. It's one of the few that I go to that is cross disciplinary, and that certainly makes it more interesting. It's also a Christian conference that's not afraid to ask the hard questions. I find that refreshing.

EnGendering Conversation

Tonight at 7:00 I'll be conducting a conversation on Social Justice and Feminism at the Underground. The event, EnGendering Conversation, is sponsored by the Harding student group HUmanity. "The purpose of the organization HUmanity is to be advocates and activists in bringing about social change regarding issues directly affecting the marginalized of the world and surrounding community. The organization will accomplish this goal through practical education of the student body and surrounding community as well as creative implementation of ideas, which will lead to change regarding peace and social justice. Members affirm that humanity's standard of living can be bettered by grassroots activism implemented through peaceful, Christ-like action to bring about positive change in the global community. The organization holds no affiliations to any political party or political ideology. The organization HUmanity bases its actions on the guidance given in Micah 6:8 that all mankind must live lives of mercy, justice, and humble acknowledgment of God." Come on out and join the conversation.

WINGS 2010

Tomorrow I'll be speaking at the 2010 WINGS conference here at Harding. The theme this year is "Come Fly with Us!" which, I must admit, sounds more like a VBS theme than the theme for an adult women's conference. (I'm sorry, but it does!!)

My assigned topic? "Airplane Maintenance." Yep. You read that right. But I just couldn't force myself to title anything "Airplane Maintenance" or to put it up on my Powerpoint introductory slide. So I cheated a little. My working title is "Spiritual Maintenance," which, I think, is a very important topic.

Here's the schedule if you're interested.

Tents & Tarps

Wondering how you can help the people of Haiti? Go to Tents and Tarps for Haiti to see a video explaining how you can partner with the students of Harding University in their quest to provide safe, dry shelter to the people of Haiti. 200 tents and tarps were delivered Sunday. More information about this project is available at the website, and you can donate online.

Reunited

Monday evening, about 8:30 or so, I was sitting at home, talking to my daughter, when I happenned to notice that one of my rings was missing. And not just any ring--my paternal grandmother's wedding ring. It's a tiny thing, white gold with a chip of a diamond, not worth a lot in dollars but high in sentimental value. I'd had it sized down to a pinky ring and have worn it daily for years, and I'd planned on giving it to my daughter one day.

I jumped up and started looking around the house--my bedroom, the bathroom, the closet, even in the laundry hamper, anywhere it might be. I looked in my car, in my husband's truck. No luck. I felt a little sick to my stomach.

As soon as I got to work Tuesday morning, I began going to all the offices to see if it had been turned in. Nope. I asked one of the cleaning ladies. No. I looked in all the rooms I'd taught in the day before, searched my office and the breakroom. No luck.

On my way back in from lunch, I saw the other cleaning lady and asked her. Before I could even describe it, she smiled and said, "A little silver ring with a tiny diamond? It's in the small second floor Ladies Room on the vanity."

I ran down the hall and up the stairs, thinking "What are the chances that it's still there?" Down another hall, through the door, and yes, right there on the vanity, 24 hours or so after losing it, was my ring.

As I later found out, a friend in the office next to mine, LQN, had found it on the floor and debated about whether to take it to her office or leave it, finally decided to leave it, and placed it on the vanity so whoever lost it could find it if she came back.

I can't help but wonder how many people saw that ring and left it there for the rightful owner. My faith in humanity is renewed. My heartfelt thanks to all those honest people.

Come One, Come All!

The Harding University English Department Announces its

Fall Literary Festival

Readings by Students, Faculty, and Guests

Literary Jeopardy

Refreshments

Thursday, October 1, 7:00 p.m. in Cone Chapel

Come on, you know you wanna be there.

Sesame Street Revisited

Remember that old Sesame Street song: "One of these things is not like the other . . . One of these things is not quite the same . . ."

(This picture first appeared on Elrod's blog. Due credit has now been given.)

What's Up? If I'm not careful, it's gonna be my weight

This place is gonna get me in trouble. We had cake during orientation. There are soft peppermints on the secretary's desk. Yesterday morning there were donuts, and by lunch slices of homemade carrot cake appeared in the breakroom. It's easy saying "no" when all you have in the fridge are fruits, veggies, and whole grains. It's a lot harder when you're surrounded by the enemy.

I Love My Family

Look what was delivered to my office yesterday:

Isn't being part of a family that loves you one of life's greatest blessings?

The Dreaded Syllabi

I'm very excited to start teaching again in a couple of weeks. What I'm not excited about is writing the syllabi for my classes. Planning a whole semester's worth of work at one time can be overwhelming. I'm teaching two new classes this Fall--British Lit I and Honors Critical Thinking and Speaking, and I'm teaching two sections of Comp I, which I've taught many times before. But, for some unknown reason back in the Spring, I decided that it would be good to adopt a new textbook instead of just keeping the one I'd been using. What in the world was I thinking?

So, now I have three syllabi to design. Being the on-top-of-things type of person I am, I went in to the office the other day to get started. I'll just do the one for Comp I, I thought, and get it out of the way. After all, that should be the easy one. I worked on it a little while, left to meet my husband for lunch, and came back to a computer that refused to boot up because, it kindly informed me, there were important files missing.

So, I just called tech support and went to Little Rock instead. The best laid plans of mice and men . . .

Not Enough Bookshelves

During my two-year doctoral leave adjuncts occupied my office at HU, so I'd had to move a lot of stuff out to give them room to put their books on the bookshelves. Most of the books I moved home were ones I thought I'd need for my research. Quite a few books, actually. Add to those the ones I acquired during the course of my doctoral studies and you can imagine how many books were stacked all over the second story of our house.

When I finished writing the dissertation a month or so ago, my husband helped me move all those books back into my office at HU. We just piled them on the floor in a corner because I planned to reorganize as I reshelved.

A couple of days ago, I thought I'd spend the afternoon whipping my office back into shape. Easy, right?

I soon discovered that one afternoon will not be enough. It's not so much the simple act of placing books on a shelf that takes so long. It's deciding where to put what. Do I organize by time period? By author in alphabetical order? By gender? (That makes sense if you realize that one of my areas of concentration is Women's Lit.) By genre?

I think I need to block off at least a whole day for this task. And I'm gonna need more bookshelves.

The Girl Who Cain't Say No

Yep. That’s me. It isn’t enough that I’m working full time on my doctorate. Of course, not. See, really, I think I’m Superwoman.

I spent all last Fall preparing for my Comprehensive Exams, doing research, and writing my dissertation proposal. Oh, and also writing a paper and presenting it at the Harding Lectureship.

This Spring, I’m writing my dissertation. Oh yeah, and preparing to lecture at Harding’s WINGS conference this weekend.

And to top it all off, I think I must be wearing a sign on my back that says “Give me all the controversial topics!” Last Fall I spoke on “Is Jesus a Feminist?” My topic this weekend? “Tolerance and Variance.” I have to wonder if I’m being set up for a fall.

No, really, I’m glad to speak on these topics. First of all, they are so important, and I’m really glad Harding sees the need for these discussions.

And secondly, I feel about preparing these talks the same way I feel about writing papers. It’s not as much fun or as interesting to write about something that you’ve already got figured out. You miss the sense of being a seeker; there is no thrill of discovery. It’s really pretty exciting.

But, boy, is my brain tired.

Oh, and I forgot to tell you that I also wrote a proposal (that was accepted) for the Christian Scholars Conference this summer. The theme of the conference is “The Power of Narrative,” and the speakers will be Billy Collins and Marilynn Robinson. It’s gotta be worth writing a paper to get to hear them speak.

Now, if I can just figure out WHEN I’ll write it . . .