First Post

I've wanted to start this blog for some time. I've had a Livejournal since junior high, but I increasingly feel the need for a different place for less "personal" posting. My thoughts and reflections on Catholic issues and my spiritual life feel a little out of place on Livejournal - and although I shouldn't, I feel shy about sharing them with my Livejournal friends.

So, why a blog? Because I am about to embark on an entirely new phase of my life, and I need a new place to reflect on it all. In the span of three months, I will marry, move to a new state, and begin a Ph.D. program. I'm feeling both exhilarated and overwhelmed.

I should also mention that I will be attending Notre Dame. I am a lifelong Catholic but have never attended Catholic school. I've been a proud public school brat all my life! I am serious about my faith and I want to think and reflect on what it means to be a faithful Catholic at Notre Dame. It seems that Catholics are in the minority in the graduate student population. I enjoyed my visit to ND this weekend, but I was left wondering if Catholicism, like football mania, is regarded by grad students to be an annoying undergraduate quirk. I find myself looking for a community at Notre Dame, a place to fit in. I am asking myself what God has in mind for me in directing my path towards Notre Dame. This blog will be a place for me to collect my thoughts as I tease out those answers.

Expect posting to be light for the next few months. Things should really start to pick up post-wedding and especially once I start graduate school.