Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol 1 p. 599
33.0 miles
cool, sunny today after a LOT of rain
340 recordings of 30 types, 62 old SVU. 24% clear.
This year, as the kids were in Oregon, I went to the Retreat House for the Triduum Retreat. I'd never even heard of the Triduum until I was in college at the Newman Center. We were of the "go on Sunday and holy days" type, and my grandmother would go to Confession every time she was going to go to Communion. We went to Good Friday services. Lent ended about noon on Saturday so we could pig out on candy! For Rich, he was the altar boy with the priest who went from house to house blessing the bread and salt and eggs and who knows what on Saturdays, and got tips and food from the people. This was one of the reasons he loved Easter. But Father Taylor is the one who introduced me, and possibly him, to the whole cycle of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil.
During our marriage, we usually went to these. I didn't always do them all, and sometimes he missed Good Friday. (At least he did in 2011, and I went and was upset with one woman who decided during what was supposed to be silent prayer to go to the ambo and read scripture.) St. Philomene's Easter Vigil was special, at least until our music director left. (And Vince and Bernadette both agree that we miss this one. Vince went at his church, and Bernadette was singing at the one in Junction City. The Retreat House one was beautiful, but not the same.)
So. Thursday afternoon I took the dog to the kennel, then came back to the Air Museum and renewed our membership. Their passes now are virtual, but since I don't have a smart phone I'll get physical cards. (Which came and I printed them out, but the woman who had my old card in her hand really confused it: "Jan and Bernadette Durbin Yarnot." I imagine they'll do.)
Then, because I had a little time before check in, I tried a geocache. Without luck, of course. All the caches in this area seem to be missing, since no one has found one since 2016, with the exception of the one I tried. Oh, well.
I stopped by the kitchen before I went to check in, to give them a dozen of Monica's oranges. They appreciated it and put them out at dinner, and people enjoyed them.
I checked in, and settled into my room, which was on the ground floor this time. It was 90 minutes to dinner, and also it was 88 degrees, so I changed out of the long-sleeved shirt I was wearing. I still had on the Camino t-shirt, and John asked me about it. He was sitting with Susan and I assumed at first they were married, but then he would sit one place and she another, so I was confused. This finally got resolved Easter morning brunch, when I learned they both are on an interfaith team and go to a lot of conferences where they see each other. She may be interested in him, and I decided over the course of the retreat that he isn't so much interested in people as he is in his prayer life. Still, he asked me about the Camino a couple of times. He had gone to the Santiago cathedral when he was in Spain, but not actually walked the Camino.
I went and walked the labyrinth, which I always love. I also visited the library and picked a book that was a bit different, "Until Tuesday." More on this later.
Dinner was pasta and gravy, some meat, salad, and steamed veggies. I took a roll but skipped dessert (which looked WONDERFUL! They all did. I tried to limit my carbs, with dubious success, but at least no desserts (and one tiny chocolate egg which I simply could not resist!)) Father Giltus gave me a big hug when he saw me. I sat with Elaine, and then she and I sat together at every meal and many of the conferences. John sat next to me and we talked some more.
I tried to limit my talking to myself. If I like the silence I must stop breaking it!!
We had an introduction to the whole retreat, and then the liturgy which started in the conference room with footwashing. I was one of four or so people who didn't do it. It was beautiful though, someone would have their feet washed (one of four stations) and then wash the feet of the next person. Then we went to the church for the rest of the liturgy, the Last Supper. Afterwards they stripped the altar and we left in silence.
I had signed up to come for adoration at 4:30, so I kept waking up every half hour or so after 1:30 to be sure I didn't miss it. I padded down to the conference room for coffee and had brought Belvita to dunk in it as I do here at home, so I was ready. There was one lady who appeared to have camped out in there... she was on the floor praying but later she lay down and slept (and snored!) a bit. There was another woman there when I arrived at 4:15 and the 5:00 woman was a few minutes late, but I made the full hour.
Breakfast (in silence) was at 8. This one was in silence, but that fell apart at the other meals, which were also supposed to be in silence. Father Tom kept trying to emphasize silence but it didn't work. I myself stayed fairly quiet, though. Breakfast was yogurt, fruit, scrambled eggs, hash browns, and Raisin Bran. (And, of course, O.J. and coffee!)
At 9 we had a Tenebrae service for morning prayer. Father Joe explained about it. It's a monastic prayer. There are 5 candles set up in front of the Crucifix, and at the end of each reading, one is extinguished, until only one candle is left. It is hidden, and there's a cacophony, symbolizing chaos without the light of Christ. Then the light returns and is placed on the altar. I really liked this service.
10 o'clock was the Stations of the Cross, outside. There were numerous distractions for me: the people who brought their little dog, the 4 year old having a tantrum (but I'd like to bring Gareth next year), a turkey with a limp, some class from somewhere playing noisily before they came to do the stations, people not moving to give others room. Still, it was a good experience.
Father Tom's conference was on Mark 6:1-6. One thing he said, quoting Jesus, was "My ability to be excellent depends on your willingness to be excellent with me."
Then lunch! Like all the retreats I've been on here, the food was excellent. Pasta with marinara sauce, a roll with butter but l didn't take the mashed potato (sigh) 3 bean salad and a VERY juicy apple. Lunch was supposed to be silent, too, but that was beginning to crumble.
Afterwards I got an Elf help book for Joanna and then went to "Movement and Meditation" where we raised our arms... it didn't do much for me. Then I didn't want to do the art, so I went to take a nap.
At 3 the Good Friday liturgy started in the conference room. It seems there were three Isaiahs spread out over a couple of centuries! Father Tom talked about the "suffering servant" and likened it to the Parkland kids. It's not "why me?" but "who does my suffering help?" In the church we read the Passion narrative, then venerated the Cross, then had Communion. I do not normally have wine, but intended to today (all weekend, actually) but they ran out.
I walked around the grounds, .8 miles. This tired me out.
Dinner was fish and chips, salad and cole slaw.
The evening prayer was for the World. In the part praying for peace I tried to say peace in ourselves, but the word "unworthy" didn't come to me and I mumbled something about feeling incompetent. Oh, well, God knew what I meant.
I went to bed about 8:15 but was awake at 1:45 for awhile. Because there was a skunk outside I had to close the window.
I was really into the book I was reading, "Until Tuesday" by Luis Carlos Montalvan. He was seriously wounded in Iraq and this is about his recovery, and PTSD, and Tuesday, the service dog who helped him. I commented in my diary about him meeting Col. McMaster. About his disappointment with Obama because he never demanded accountability. "Baby wipes, one of humankind's most under-rated inventions." I finished the book at 4 AM and then was able to go back to sleep. I got up at 5:30 and went to the other building to the library to pick up the sequel.
Breakfast was french toast (OK, enough already, I had a piece! But I skipped the potatoes!) sausage, fruit yogurt, raisin bran and O.J. It, too, was supposed to be in silence. The Mindful Movement was walking. I tried, I tried, but I just don't get it. We had another Tenebrae service.
I talked to a man sitting outside about the Camino.
Father Tom is from Pittsburgh. Also, there's a Passionist monastery in Pittsburgh and I've since looked it up, not really all that far from where Rich grew up. This conference was good except we broke into groups and were supposed to discuss one thing but ended up talking about Jehovah's witnesses, and conversion, etc. This way I was able to avoid sharing, and made my escape for lunch. I really don't do well with group discussions.
The Holy Spirit is not a dove, but an EAGLE!!
Lunch was salad, bratwurst, sauerkraut, beans and I had a few chips. Dessert looked lovely, too.
My plan was to sit outside and read, but that didn't work out too well. Elaine spotted my Camino shirt and wanted to know all about it, so we talked about that for about 20 minutes. (Poor Father Tom. He kept asking for silence, with very little success.) She apparently hadn't noticed Thursday night, nor heard me talking to John about it. Finally we were through and I went to a bench overlooking the grounds, got settled in, and sometimes looked up to see John walking the labyrinth. Then I had a nosebleed!
Back in the room, and since it was a bit chillier than yesterday I put the longsleeve shirt again. I was reading, and suddenly saw John walk past my room holding a water glass. What in heck? (My window was overlooking grass, not sidewalk!) So I asked him later and apparently he had a long conversation at the labyrinth with a ladybug. He didn't see it when he'd finished the walk, but it seems to have hitch-hiked back to the building with him, so he was replacing it "fly away home".
Then the fire alarm went off. I went out with my book but without my purse, and mostly without my camera. It did turn out to be a false alarm, but I couldn't get a picture of the fire truck!
There was a short conference about the Sign of the Cross.
Montalvan's second book (Tuesday's Promise) was more about life with Tuesday, and he decided to have his leg amputated so he could have a great prosthesis and maybe start running again. This was a lot of the book, as well as getting back with his family and going to spend all the holidays together. Also, what to do as Tuesday aged... he was 10 and would soon start slowing down, so they planned to have a successor dog, Promise, who would be trained for two years then join the family and slowly take over chores from Tuesday. The book ended on a very hopeful, upbeat, note. And then the co-author's epilog told of Montalvan's suicide, December 2, 2016. Apparently he was having trouble with the leg, had had orthopedic surgery in Australia and Tuesday wasn't there, and was in Houston for further treatment. Without Tuesday. WHY didn't someone come along to take care of the dog while Luis Carlos was laid up? I'm certain that if the dog had been there he'd have noticed the human's mood and helped. This is so sad. And now I know why these books are in the library. (They were donated by a friend of Montalvan's, but that isn't what I mean.)
Supper was stuffed pork chops. Mighty hard to cut, but tasty.
The Easter Vigil Mass started outside, with a fire kindled with flint and steel... Rich always figured that a lighter was flint and steel, but this was a real stone and knife. Eventually the sparks caught. Then I held the book while Father incised the candle and said all the prayers, and then we all went into the chapel. Then he brought the candle in (but I missed the "Lumen Christi!" "Deo Gracias!")
We all had candles, they took the book away from me, and then we took the lights to behind the altar where they were put into sand trays. This is not the usual time this happens, but it worked better with the way the chapel is configured. There were three readings in the dark, then the lights came up for the Gospel! Father Tom read the Gospel of Mark and then talked about it. "When I say 'Jesus Christ is Risen' you say 'Jesus Christ is Risen Indeed!'" And it was pretty much the ending of every sentence.
Then it was time for me to hold the book again while water was poured into the basin and Father blessed it, then put the candle into it, then had us renew our baptismal vows. This time everyone sprinkled water on everyone else. They took the book away from me and went on with the Mass. It was beautiful, and I have a second career now, as a book stand.
We had a social with antipasto, and John wanted to talk to me more about the Camino, but Joyce came up to talk about meditation and he was distracted. I made my excuses and said I'd see him in the morning, and went to bed.
Easter morning, up before dawn, out on the grounds greeting the sun with meditative movement. Also admiring the almost-full moon setting.
A Continental breakfast in the conference room, then Easter Mass. I wore a skirt. I had the reading from Acts. Father Tom explained each reading before the reader came, and then I wondered if he'd actually forgotten to read the Gospel, as he was down the room folding a sheet with Olivia and then saying "Jesus Christ is Risen!" But when this was done, he headed back to the ambo reciting the Gospel. Then he had a real stemwinder of a sermon. What I took away from it was that Jesus, without the winding sheets, was naked. And it's up to us to clothe Him. Am I ready to be his wardrobe?
Again I held the book for the Baptismal vows, and gave it back to Father after he went around sprinkling everyone.
John saved me a seat at brunch (yummy yummy) because I asked him to (I had to go to the bathroom first) and Susan sat across the table, so the talk was all about prayer. The night before he said he is going to be a grandfather in November so we did talk about that a little.
And so I left, picked up the dog, and attempted to get back to the real world.
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