Imbolc\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Waning Cold Moon<\/p>\n
Ancientrails hits the road again this afternoon for sunny eastern South Dakota, high above the plains.\u00a0 There I will reside, for three nights, in a local instance of a 1,300 year plus institution, the Benedictine Monks<\/a> of the Roman Catholic Church. It’s interesting to me that the international website for the Benedictines has St. John’s in Collegeville as its host.\u00a0 I have always found the monastic or even the hermetic life appealing which is why I eventually made my peace with Andover and its relative seclusion.<\/p>\n The quiet, contemplative atmosphere encouraged by monastics the world around and in various faith traditions serves a calm heart to a frenzied world, a place to which we can retire if we need.\u00a0 I’ve had a long stretch with no regular\u00a0 contemplative or meditative practice, this weekend I plan to enter a new phase, one appropriate to this time in my life.<\/p>\n Aging itself requires a contemplative spirit, an accepting spirit for the challenges that it holds include the inevitable and long shunned confrontation with death.\u00a0 (Ironic note:\u00a0 In the midst of this thought I got a robo-call from Congress Michele Bachman which I allowed to trigger upset.)<\/p>\n Kate and I need to check our answers for Chapter 2 right now.\u00a0 Back at ya.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Imbolc\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Waning Cold Moon Ancientrails hits the road again this afternoon for sunny eastern South Dakota, high above the plains.\u00a0 There I will reside, for three nights, in a local instance of a 1,300 year plus institution, the Benedictine Monks of the Roman Catholic Church. It’s interesting to me that the international website for the … Continue reading Contemplative<\/span>