Dream Trip, Nightmare or Blessed Retreat


I saved up for two years, paid my credit card down to zero, and headed to France for my 75th birthday. My friend picked me up from the Charles De Gaulle International Airport in Paris. We headed off to the Basse Normandie region, the first leg of the journey. We planned to spend a few days visiting towns and churches in the area. The next step in the plan was to go to Paris near the end of my stay to do all the touristy things that people do when they visit France.

Accommodation mishaps, including locking myself outside my hotel room on the night of my birthday, resulted in a delay in the plan to visit towns and churches. We did get to visit the Basilica of St. Therese of Lisieux in Lisieux.

I finally found accommodation in Villedieu-les-Poeles in a lovely 3 bedroom house for less the 50 Euros a day. It was just in time, because France was put into lockdown the day after I moved into the place. Needless to say the lockdown ended my dreams of seeing Paris since everything is closed and people can only go out for necessities. In addition, the Canadian government called all Canadians outside of the country to come home. So, leaving for home two weeks early was disappointing. But it all turned out to be a blessing in disguise

The house I rented is nestled in the rolling green countryside outside the town centre. It is the perfect setting for prayer and contemplation. Richard Rohr's daily meditations and those of Tara Brach guide me. What may not have been a dream trip but could have been a nightmare turned into a blessed retreat





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Homily on Mark 6:14-29 - for July 15, 2012

Image
God’s Voice Will Not Be Silenced Speaking Truth to Power This reading tells me that there are consequences to speaking truth to power, often deadly consequences.   But, God’s voice will not be silenced.    We are told that John spoke against King Herod’s marriage to his brother’s wife, Herodias.   Herodias was not too pleased about this negative publicity.   So she bides her time.   She uses Herod’s hastily spoken promise to her daughter to silence John once and for all. But God’s voice will not be silenced.   We are told in the stories just before this that Jesus was rejected in his own home town of Nazareth.   Jesus left Nazareth but he was not deterred by this rejection.   He sent the twelve out two by two and Jesus and his disciples carried on God’s call to repentance when John no longer could.   Speaking truth to power continues to have devastating consequences.   In 2004, I went on a women’s del...
Read more

7 July 2013 – 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Image
Shared Homily Starter First Reading: Isaiah 66.10-14 Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 62 Second Reading: Galatians 6:14-18 Gospel: Luke 10.1-12, [13-16], 17-20 Today’s gospel is about evangelization.   The word, “evangelization” has become, for many of us, a word that sends up red flags.   This is because, unfortunately, for almost two millennia, evangelization has been used more as a weapon than as an invitation to follow Christ’s example of peace and love.   Let’s examine evangelization from Jesus’ perspective.   He knows there are plenty of people out there who would be open to hearing the Good News.   He also knows that there are plenty who don’t want to hear it.   But Jesus sends out his disciples like lambs into a sea of wolves.   We live in a culture of ravenous consumption and accumulation.   We seek to accumulate more and more money, more and more power and more and more ad nauseam.   The more we have, the more we wan...
Read more

24TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Image
15 September 2013 – Shared Homily Starter First Reading: Exodus 32.7-11, 13-14 Second Reading: 1 Timothy 1.12-17 Gospel: Luke 15.1-32 When I pondered this week’s readings, a theme began to emerge.   Before I delve into the theme, I’d like you to consider a quote from Thomas Berry.   He said, “[O]ne of the basic difficulties of the modern West is its division into a secular scientific community, which is concerned with creative energies, and a religious community, which is concerned with redemptive energies.   So concerned are we with redemptive healing that once healed, we look only to be more healed.   We seldom get to our functional role within the creative intentions of the universe” (Berry 1988:25). When I considered this and looked at the readings again, I saw that what we need to be is not only co-creators but co-redemptors.   For example, in our first reading, have God’s promises to Noah and to Abraham been committed to forgetfu...
Read more