A (Sun)day in The Life

Each time that I talk to someone from home, I want to be able to convey how much happens each and every day here at the Mount - our monastery. And even if I were able to talk to everyone that I wanted to each day, I would not be able to tell them everything that is happening. So, I figured I would give you a rundown of my day today so you might get a glimpse of the amount of life lived in a day.

(Note: Today is Sunday, so that makes it a bit different from the weekdays, but I will try to do one of those rundowns in the future.)

I began my morning by listening to the latest episode of On Being, my favorite radio show. While listening to that, I received a text from a friend asking if it was too early to talk, and it wasn't. So, I talked to her for a bit.

On Saturday and Sunday mornings, our community prays together at 8:30am. Today was the first day that I read Scripture at prayer. As I got a bit nervous, it was good to remind myself that I didn't live or die by how well I read. (While this might sound ridiculous, it is a big deal for someone who is quite hard on herself.) We celebrate Sunday Liturgy at 9:30am, so I continued onto that. The Scripture readings today were particularly thought-provoking as our two readers read the Old and New Testament side-by-side. In addition to today's Gospel and a great homily, these words provided a wonderful opportunity for reflection on conversion. When I missed one of our sisters at the Sign of Peace, I said sorry. She replied, "Don't be sorry. Be happy." The spirit here is beautiful.

After Liturgy, some members of our community (and others who joined us) watched a documentary, The Francis Effect, together. The film highlighted ways that Pope Francis is changing the Church; it was wonderful to re-witness those moments immediately after our pope was elected and asked for our blessing. Before our noon dinner, I shared a moment with one of our sisters in the chapel who reminded me of the support I am receiving right now. This was partnered with another sister who made sure that her prayers for me were working. We sat together at lunch, and she promised to double them up if needed.

I noticed how glorious the weather was while we ate lunch, so I wanted to take a bike ride. The blue sky was gorgeous, but the strong east winds were less exciting. One of our oblates had a picnic this afternoon, so off we went. It was another opportunity to enjoy the remaining moments of summer weather. There, I shared lots of beautiful conversations with many people. We returned to the Mount for 5:30, as that is when we hold evening prayer most nights.

I enjoyed dinner with our two other postulants after prayer. We came home and saw a sister walking her dogs, so we chatted a bit. Now I am watching the Emmys while I write everything that came before. Wow!

No day here is quite the same, and I know I missed so many small details, but I hope this gives you a better idea of how much life, love, presence, and spirit I experience here. And, most exciting of all - tomorrow is a new day!

Let us walk in the holy presence.