Don't bother reading this.

Ok, phew, moment of insight. I have felt totally unfocused and lost in my masters program, but I think it just clicked. I think it comes down to 2 things: religious experience and faith & culture. A lot of it centers around sociology, so maybe that is where I should set up camp. I really like looking at the embededness of faith in culture, how culture shapes faith and faith culture, what is common to religious experience, and what differs in it. The thing is, I don't have really worked out "questions," and people in grad school are ALL about your "questions." That is what has been intimidating to me. I don't have one set of questions. I ask questions about everything. What do all of my questions have in common? A critical eye. That's it. There's no theme. But if you're asking about what themes I like and would like to know more about, I think those are the themes: faith & culture and religious experience. Ok. So that's something.

Is there an actual career path that goes around these areas? If there is, it's sociology, I would say, although we all know I'm terrified of the methodology of sociology, because I have a basic fear of people (rejection). Yet, they are what I find fascinating. And also, if I am thinking about writing, and about a sort of writing that helps to highlight something fundamental about human experience that we can all agree on, I think this knowledge would be enriching. fact. It would be enriching no matter what I do. It probably won't lead to a career, but if my career ends up being writing, basically any experience can be "beneficial" or preparatory.

So what kinds of classes do I need to take to comprise an actual "education" or "study" of these factors? I think I need some psych and some sociology. I need some "world religions" and some basic faith & culture classes, like faith and politics or faith and the cinema. Does this include feminist/womanist/mujerista stuff? It doesn't have to, but it would probably fit in nicely. Do I need to take any more boring classes? I mean, I'm not taking any more intro classes, that's for sure. But maybe some Aquinas? Augustine? The thing is, once you get to grad school, you have limited time, and you really have to narrow your focus. And I don't know everything there is to know about those guys, but I do know some, I have an undergrad in the basics. I don't know, I should talk it over with my advisor. Good news: people that aren't getting Ph.D.'s DEFINITELY don't need to bother themselves with taking graduate classes during their masters.