In the big leagues now

Today I drove from Lexington to Atlanta for the annual meeting of the Society of Christian Ethics. My friends Jim and Christine graciously footed the bill for this poor postgraduate, borrowing a rental car from the seminary and covering the gas bills. We had a great time on the drive down to Georgia, listening to holiday carols, bluegrass, and Charlie Daniels. The conference starts tomorrow evening; we arrived early for Christine to attend the board meeting.

It's a bit strange to be attending these things. I feel something like an imposter, or a wannabe. Who cares what I think? I'm just a pathetic postgraduate, an unproven amateur who should heed that turn of the century parenting advice -- that children at the dinner table should be seen and not heard.

Ok, so it's not that bad. People are generally gracious and welcoming, sometimes even attentive to what we have to say. But last year, I felt a bit out of my depth, and was afraid to make comments for fear of sounding unknowledgable or insufficiently erudite.

Whatever! This year, I'm reveling in my status as a punter (Brit/Aussie slang for someone who doesn't run anything, but just shows up). I'm relaxed, I'm enjoying hanging out with my friends, I'm just sitting back and taking it all in. Turns out there's a certain freedom in being a nobody, which is that you can fly under the radar and just absorb everything. I'll let you know how it works out.