In less than 24 hours I'll be in the air and on the way back to the Middle East. The surreality of this return is unmatched and leaves me tremorous. The semester has already started. In the last email the kind and straightforward rep in the HR dept of this relatively new college in a dusty city called me Doctor. Let there be no misunderstandings. If working 17 years in the field garnered an honorary degree I'd still be outside the lines, but please, I've haven't taught in over a year and I am fearfully excited and I have to be because this one has to work for longer than a three and out ballgame.
This morning my sister and I went to the 9am mass at a Slovakian Catholic Church that was done in half Latin. At the conclusion there was a benediction and there was transcendence. Such faith and ritual bringing you so close to God the bells ring and you're being pulled out of the temple by the rope attached to your ankle and when the cool autumnal winds blow red maple leaves in your face you cry out, thank you Jesus and forgive me for doubting.
What am I talking about. A rosary. The ritual. How will I manage myself this time in the desert. For one there will be a furry fence between me and a few vices. I'll be grateful for that. How will I save money, well, if I stay in place for a while there will be the necessary accumulation I won't be ashamed to own. One, a car. This country requires a car and that is why I got a new driver's license. It may take longer to save but I'll have a car.
How do you feel after leaving St. Joes so abruptly, how did you handle the guilt of leaving them all high and dry? Well, the new worker came, and that took that guilt down a level, but I still felt, and feel I left as I did in the only way I knew how. But God bless them, each and every cotton picking one of them. Holy Cow, they are doing God's work but let it be a warning, first and foremost, the principalities and powers swirl in that house and every effort ought to be made to keep God present. Don't let your guard down, ya here? Agents of evil are constantly attacking, keep the faith. Pray, keep praying, bond with like minded believers, study the word and distance yourself from the slanders and lies of evil.
This afternoon I went to a cider mill with my sister and her daughter and her three precocious children and it was beautiful to be outside. In two days I'll be 7700 miles away and it will be hot. To bottle such a climate for one of those dusty rug burning afternoons would be wondrous, an angelically tasteful respite from the rebelling heat. I give up so much to be there, though I didn't try hard to stay here. Rochester. A great city. Communal living. That is hard. Could I do it again? Will I call them again? Will they be in my summer plans next year provided I make it through one year? A lot of ifs coming up, keep that rosary close to you, brother. Say the interior prayer, doubt will do you no good. Here we go, we're taking the dive, Lord Have Mercy.
This morning my sister and I went to the 9am mass at a Slovakian Catholic Church that was done in half Latin. At the conclusion there was a benediction and there was transcendence. Such faith and ritual bringing you so close to God the bells ring and you're being pulled out of the temple by the rope attached to your ankle and when the cool autumnal winds blow red maple leaves in your face you cry out, thank you Jesus and forgive me for doubting.
What am I talking about. A rosary. The ritual. How will I manage myself this time in the desert. For one there will be a furry fence between me and a few vices. I'll be grateful for that. How will I save money, well, if I stay in place for a while there will be the necessary accumulation I won't be ashamed to own. One, a car. This country requires a car and that is why I got a new driver's license. It may take longer to save but I'll have a car.
How do you feel after leaving St. Joes so abruptly, how did you handle the guilt of leaving them all high and dry? Well, the new worker came, and that took that guilt down a level, but I still felt, and feel I left as I did in the only way I knew how. But God bless them, each and every cotton picking one of them. Holy Cow, they are doing God's work but let it be a warning, first and foremost, the principalities and powers swirl in that house and every effort ought to be made to keep God present. Don't let your guard down, ya here? Agents of evil are constantly attacking, keep the faith. Pray, keep praying, bond with like minded believers, study the word and distance yourself from the slanders and lies of evil.
This afternoon I went to a cider mill with my sister and her daughter and her three precocious children and it was beautiful to be outside. In two days I'll be 7700 miles away and it will be hot. To bottle such a climate for one of those dusty rug burning afternoons would be wondrous, an angelically tasteful respite from the rebelling heat. I give up so much to be there, though I didn't try hard to stay here. Rochester. A great city. Communal living. That is hard. Could I do it again? Will I call them again? Will they be in my summer plans next year provided I make it through one year? A lot of ifs coming up, keep that rosary close to you, brother. Say the interior prayer, doubt will do you no good. Here we go, we're taking the dive, Lord Have Mercy.
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