Week 3: The benefits of supervision

Not to sound like a three-year-old stuck at day-care for an extra fifteen minutes, but... "I want my supervisor!!!"

There are benefits to having a boss around.

• You aren't reliant on your own yellow sheet of to-do list.
  
• You have someone you can go to with questions.
  
• People don't look at you like you have the answers.
• You have someone you can go to and say "you want me to huh what?"

Also, since this is Internship, the supervisor isn't just a boss, she's a mentor, a guide in discernment, a sounding board for sermon-writing, and so on. That's why, as part of the learning contract (oh man! I have to write that! *scribbles on the yellow sheet*), weekly supervision is to be listed. This isn't time for supervision in the sense that I'm being told what to do, but supervision like on CPE. In CPE we talked about cases and staff/group relations. On internship, we talk about... uh... well... I guess we'll talk about discernment and cases and staff relations and so on. PS has learned that when I say, "Tell me about so-and-so," that I'm looking for background because I've had an interesting interaction, and that I will tell her about the interaction, after the background is given. I like it that way, because then the background I get is neutral and not trying to explain, excuse, or blame the interaction.

Anyway, last week PS was on a mission trip. She was back for Sunday worship, we chatted some on the way to/from lunch with her family, (at a local diner... hint hint... come visit me, we have diners!), and then she left on vacation. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm all about vacations and relaxing. And it's good in some ways because I have had a lot of office-based stuff to do to get ready for preaching this weekend and for VBS coming up in a few weeks. (If I keep saying "a few weeks" will it always be a day away?) But, I'm going to be very glad when she's back and I'm not the pastoral authority in residence anymore.

Of course, two days after VBS gets done, she'll be leaving for churchwide assembly. I'm glad I'm not at one of those scary internship sites with an off-site supervisor. (Meaning, as the intern you're it at that church, and you get permission to do communion and all, and you meet with your supervisor occasionally, but not every day as part of the life of the congregation.)

Also, people confuse me.

Also, I may have volunteer myself for something that I should have volunteered PS for, only that wouldn't've been right, either.

Also, how do you stay awake at 1:30?