Celebrations Abound

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Since the last blog post two weeks ago, we had our mid-term break and now we are into the second half of the program - Week 8. During the break many enjoyed the opportunity to travel, or to visit home, or nearby friends. For me the four days enabled a catch-up with another friend from my first sabbatical, Walter Kieffer, from the Benedictine Abbey in Collegeville, MN and to meet his friends from nearby, with whom we travelled to Corpus Christi. This is a coastal town on the Gulf of Mexico, where damage from hurricane Harvey was still evident. We inspected an aircraft carrier, the USS Lexington, which was finally decommissioned only in 1991 after several rounds of active service. Since the break, spring has finally sprung and we have adjusted our clocks. Many, however, are still getting used to darkness on rising. However, increased daylight hours, are a joy. Our program continues to enrich, with recent input from Linda Gibler OP (Cosmology), Spirituality of the Two Halves (Ron Rolheiser, OMI), Intercultural Dynamics (SallyGomez-Jung) and The Francis Effect (Roger Keeler, OMI). All were stimulating speakers and challenged in various ways. Celebrations have continued. Recently we celebrated Jim Myers’ (director) birthday and yesterday was St Patrick’s Day, with celebrations downtown, as the San Antonio Fiesta is also in full swing. The locals really know how to celebrate - even the River was green (resembling the Shannon!) and apparently there was plenty of green beer! We decorated our home in honour of St Patrick, and celebrated with drinks, a sing-along, Irish food and finally the movie, Dancing at ’Lughnasa. On days like this everyone claims to be at least a little Irish! Today’s Sunday liturgy was one with a difference. A small group took advantage of the opportunity to celebrate Sunday in one of the local parishes. This mission is one of the original five, all founded by Spanish Franciscans. The congregation is proud of its traditions and clearly works hard to maintain them. Every Sunday the midday Mass is a mariachi Mass and today's will remain in my memory for a long time.

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