The Other 15

I am a lousy student. Sometimes I don't think I'll ever graduate. I'm dreading the end of term when my grades will be published for everyone to see. It's nobody's fault but mine. I pay enough attention to know what my homework is, but I don't work steadily on it. My study habits resemble a 14-year old learning to drive a stick-shift. I spit, sputter, and jerk until something either stalls or engages with frightening acceleration. A real lack of consistency. I'm not talking about graduate school or continuing education. I'm talking about relationships. God. . .wife. . .children. . .church. . .relatives. . .co-workers. . .homeless folks on my front porch. . .my wife's cat, to name a few. There is no doubt what the criteria for a passing grade is: ",To love God with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength, and my neighbor as myself." Out of those 18 words, I've only managed to master three. . .the first two and the last one. Trouble is, I don't know whether I have 40 seconds or 40 years to make peace with the other 15 words in that sentence. I hope it is closer to 40 years because like I said, I'm a lousy student.