Other people's children aren't so bad.

Remember the teacher that I didn't care for, and was pretty sure I wouldn't get along with? After the comment yesterday regarding religion and church planting and such, his response was this...

'I assigned the books that I did with the intent to wrench us outside our comfort zones. The point is, like John F. Kennedy said, we all breathe the same air -- we share this world, and we're required to learn to live alongside, and to love, others with whom we might not see eye-to-eye. Literature assists us in this like little else in our experiences. I'm not interested in censoring anyone; on the contrary, I want us all to listen to one another, to be open with one another, etc. For those of you who have been discussing your faith traditions, church planting, etc -- feel free to do so. The introductions board is for that very thing: introductions. And the subject of religion is invariably going to crop up with respect to our discussions of Blood Meridian and Blankets. One cannot speak intelligently about either book without speaking about the Bible. If a student leaves the class because he or she feels awkward or irritated by certain discussions, that's a shame, because we benefit from multiple world views. But it's also the way it goes sometimes.'

I'm really glad he stepped in and said anything. I was starting to feel like I had to speak up and defend myself. It's nice to know the Professor didn't side with this student (because honestly, I was a little worried about getting in trouble for it.) Also, I couldn't agree with him more. I feel bad for the student that is dropping the class...he's going to miss out on a good class, all because he refuses to keep an open mind.

As an aside, another student mentioned how uncomfortable she felt with one of the books. I'm assuming it is Tipping the Velvet. I'm really enjoying it thus far, and I'll be posting a review on it when I'm all done.

Oh, and I'm having a hell of a time settling in and doing my homework. Tomorrow, I'm going to sit at the table (or my new desk, if we get it put together) and actually get some of this hammered out. After I've done that, I'm going to sit and read for at least an hour or two. I'm already ahead of the reading, but I'd like to stay that way!