It feels a little bit
strange going to St. Benedict’s for daily Mass now that the two people (besides each other) Kevin and I most often attended Mass with at that church have moved to new
places as they continue on their faith and vocation journeys. I won’t hear from Michele until Christmas and
that’s if she sends me a letter via snail mail since she's now in a cloistered Carmelite community in Carmel, California.
Fortunately, we keep in touch pretty much daily with John in one way or
another, even though he’s been on summer assignment in Hampton, Virginia, and
is heading back to St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, Maryland, very soon for his second
year of seminary.
 |
| There's not a straight wall or floor in our place, but the picture frames are level, though this photo seems like it's not. |
In a sense, Kevin and I have felt like we’ve had two leave the nest over the past year. What’s funny is that this summer, we’ve
started actually spent some time decorating our place.
We now have our dining area devoted to a Rochester, Lake Ontario,
beginning of Kevin and me becoming friends and dating theme.
We have a new
shower curtain and matching towels in the bathroom. I’m still working on what I’ve been referring
to as my “inspiration wall” which is the space above my desk. This past weekend, I figured out how I’m going to
display some cards Kevin and I sent each other over the years in a collage so
they can be opened and read while hanging up.
I try to remind myself of the major progress I’ve made in the past in
the past nine months. It is rather
significant considering I’d brought several boxes over here when my mom sold
the family home last fall, and then another bunch of things to sort through
when my grandmother passed away, plus I still had some items from my dad that I
didn’t want to throw out, but I hadn’t gotten around to mailing to family
members or friends who would appreciate the items that my dad had collected
over the years.
It wouldn’t
surprise me in the least if when Kevin and I finally get our place looking
halfway decent (as far as we are concerned—not according to what anyone else
thinks) and to a point where we could comfortably have more than our usual one
person over at a time, then we’d decide to move. After being dragged from one location to the
next while I was growing up and hating it every time. I do not like the prospect of moving, but at
least I can be fairly certain we’ll be staying in Richmond. God would have to make it blatantly obvious
and more than abundantly clear to both Kevin and me that it was His Will before
I’d even consider another out of state move.
There is a part
of me wondering who God might bring into our lives next to walk with on their vocational
discernment journey. Another part of me
is wondering if this will be a time for Kevin to focus more our own
relationships with the Lord and one another.
Perhaps that would be partly expressed through us getting back to work
on our spiritual memoir. I know, I for
one, could certainly stand to be reminded of the myriad of ways the Lord has
worked in and through our lives over the past 15+ years.
