I know I’m not alone in having gone looking for some old file on my computer only to find that my system of naming and filing documents is, well, rather unsystematic. On my last computer, everything was arranged temporally, with the past nested in more and more recent layers. That is, on the top level is a folder titled “the past”, which, when opened, reveals a few folders from a certain, recent period and a folder titled “the past”, which, when opened, reveals a few folders from a certain, less-recent-than-the-previous-level period, and a folder titled “the past”, which when opened, reveals…

But on this computer, everything (everything) is stored either on the desktop or in “my documents”, so today when I went looking for an old term paper, I had to scroll through everything I’ve written in the past few years. I had no idea what I titled the paper. Some documents have these great, descriptive names like “inculturation paper.” But others are more enigmatic.

Here is a short list of some of my more enigmatic document titles (just from the past two years). I hope you will take the time to read through all of your file names and share a few with me here! It’s like meeting yourself for the first time. Can you intuit your way through your own mind?

joy.doc

(This is IT!)

being_bonaventure.doc

(What’s it like to be a medieval mystic monk? Actually, it was about ontology.)

theological_agreements.doc

(For when you’re tired of scholarly criticism. How about a little scholarly affirmation?)

to_myself.doc

(“And what do you think you will answer yourself?“)

entropyreform.doc

(We need to reform the way we’re doing chaos! Elect me, and I promise entropy will be more efficient, better organized, and more cost effective.)

faith_fall.doc

(Like a trust-fall but more profound?)

feministsboo.docx

(Actually, when I opened this one, it was some class notes on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Qumran, and one tiny note at the bottom recording a comment a classmate made about a course in feminist philosophy of religion.)

god.doc

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