Aha...

Let me quote a some of the beginning lines of the article I had to read in my Lifespan and Neurophysiologic Development class... "Such a stance implies that there are many possible realities based on many possible truths (Rosen & Kuehlwein, 1996). I hope to elaborate that normality is a value based concept; that it heavily depends on the sociopolitical economic context including the historical moment; that it is culture specific; and that there is no normality outside of a particular context."

"The idea for the subject of this article was triggered by a friend worrying that his twenty-year-old daughter had still not had any sexual relations. He did not use the word virgin, showing that female sexual relations have become transformed from a loss -- in this case loss of virginity -- to a gain -- in this case gain of sexual experience (Freud, 1999)."

When I read the title of the article, The Social Construction of Normality, I got a hint of a pit in my stomach. I could see the train lights at the other end of the tunnel. The day of orientation, the Dean of the school hammered into us that Social Work is about social justice. The prayer in the back of my mind at all times is, "Lord, how do I walk with integrity as a Christ follower and care about the oppressed and those discriminated against in the context of this academic setting?"

The morning I was headed to this class, my mama and I were talking. She expressed a concern of the liberalness of academia and my staying strong in my faith. I said, "Mama, do you really think I could lose my faith in school?" with some incredulity. That conversation stuck with me throughout the morning until I had an aha moment later on. aha moment -n an instant in which the solution to a problem becomes clear.

Honestly, until the "moment", I actually didn't realize that I had a problem. This still quiet voice whispered to me... "take heed, lest ye fall." I felt fear in recognizing my pride... no one sets out to be swayed by the opinions of the world. Who do I think I am, that I could be able to resist? Able to resist, that is, apart from an utter, daily dependence on the Lord and His Holy Spirit residing in me.

I gained a renewed sense of my need to cling to the Father and rest in His provision for my daily involvement in class discussions, responding to articles and discussion boards, and the moments of engaging with my classmates. I think I need to go back to mama, and apologize for my pride and thank her for pointing me to the cross.