Comma -La

One of the beautiful Jersey shore homes 

that we pass on our walking trail.

Since most blogs, are personal--either in sharing ideas and thoughts or just daily goings on, I am taking the opportunity of doing just that in mine this week.

Being on vacation, which means living in a much more relaxed and flexible schedule than normally, I took the opportunity to watch all four nights of the DNC last week...all of them lasted until near midnight! Even though I am admittedly a Democrat in my philosophic leanings, I still found the whole event outstanding in its presentations, energy, organization, and creativity. Whoever the producers and idea people were they really did a wonderful job of presenting the philosophy of the party in many and various ways, all of them highly interesting, diverse and extremely relatable to the audience.

Although I am in awe of the speaking skills of both Barack and Michelle Obama (of which the next day's CNN headline was something like: Michelle Obama gave a master class in oratorical presentation) the ones that really moved me were all the "ordinary people" that agreed to tell a little part of their life experience in some area or another that fit into the platform of the candidates of the Democrats this year.

As always, it will be fascinating to see how things "shake out" over the next 10 weeks. 

Panda news and assistance

The San Diego Zoo just introduced the public to its new Pandas. The young male and young female are the first new pandas that the US has been able to acquire in 20 years. In case they run out of bamboo, they can make a quick call to southern New Jersey where I am spending some vacation time and pick some up here. 

On our daily walk on the 10-mile long Middle Township Trail, we pass this beautiful grove of bamboo, right there in the middle of nothing special. It's quite an unusual scene. I guess I'd better send a text to San Diego and tell them of this emergency cache, just in case. 

Another vacation sharing: if you're into Wordle maybe you'd like to join us with these words and see how you do---let us know if you ever get it in "2."

Here's what we're playing for the last 5 months of the year, join us: August-Auger; September-Sepia; October-Clout; November-Novel; and December-Decal.

Community

The latest additions to our Community, seen this weekend right outside our windows.

As you can imagine I’ve read a lot about the concept of community in my life. Here’s a very unique definition of it from Anne Lamott… it’s pretty good!

“Community means we’re collaborating. It means you help my children and my old people and I help yours. It means we are in this together. Most of us are perhaps a tiny bit self-absorbed, and good at keeping out people who don’t look, vote, or act like our friends, and that’s very nice. But a good community includes all those other people and those of us at the edges. Welcomes are offered: hey, come on into the circle—yeah, you. You with your nose in the air, or a neck tattoo, a walker or a Rolls.”

Celebrations

 

These are the latest in our continual flowering in the inner courtyard. My "Seek" app names them Surprise Lilies and after this first little bunch arrived about 20-30 are now in bloom. They are sweet and appear fragile and delicate. I haven't been brave enough to try them in a vase indoors in chapel, but maybe I will this week. However, there really isn't a great need for that since our hydrangea will seemingly last into November---they are huge and in endless number this year!

These days we are celebrating life passages for some of our sisters. Miriam Mashank passed into the next life last week. Her obit is on our website here if you haven't read it yet---quite the list of accomplishments. This week we honor 10 jubilarians, celebrants of 50, 60 and 70years of Monastic Profession. Short bios of each of them can be found in the latest issue of the MOUNT magazine here.