Learning Never Ends

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I'm just finishing a six month internship followed by a year-long residency in CPE (that is Clinical Pastoral Education - which means basically a program which educates pastoral ministers, in this case, at the bedside) in a hospital setting. It was a surprisingly intense experience - and I loved it!

I had no idea when I began that I would find myself engaged with so much learning, with so many different people, with so much pain, with so many memories, experiences and with my own faith. I had lots of transferrable skills from my years of ministry, but it was important for me to enter into the mystery of this learning experience with a spirit of unknowing.

My friends will also confirm that along the way I broke my ankle and so my CPE experience also included a few weeks of being a recipient of both medical and spiritual care. Did I mention I learned a lot?!

Why am I surprised? I'm a Dominican after all. Seeking truth is a characteristic of our common life. That means we can never stop learning.
Ruth Poochigian, OP
Madison, WI

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