HeightstoDepths

I’ve been a bit remiss in posting, so I have, so I thought I’d give yous’ons a bit of the old run down on the last couple weeks.  I just got back this evening from a Servants of the Word house retreat weekend.  We were nearly complete, Peter was off serving on the NUTS residential.  NUTS is the aptly named YI project for 11-14 year olds.  On getting back I asked Peter how he was doing and with a big grin he said “wiped out”.  Apparently the main tasks of the weekend were helping the kids grow in faith and confiscating candy.  He said some of the kids brought as much candy/soda/crisps as clothing for the weekend (crisps this part of the word are potato chips, potato chips are something else).

The other seven of us from the house enjoyed a lovely weekend on Strangford Lough, the same place I went to one of my first couple weeks here in NI.   There’s a map showing where it is in relation to Belfast here: www.strangfordlough.org/map/maps/incontext.gif . The topic for out time was the interior life and protecting sacred space.  Lots of space for reading, prayer, reflection, and enjoying the beautiful surroundings, all told a marvelous weekend.  Saturday morning was a spiritual highpoint for me.  Q pulled a couple selections from a book called The Soul of the Apostolate.  Reading over the selection about the interior life and being united to Christ I think the Lord helped me to do just that.  Being recollected has been a big topic, both for the SW at large and my own personal formation, over the last year and a half or two.  My experience of Saturday morning was one of having many strands, thoughts, and prayers of the last time in the area be woven together more coherently.  A time when much that I’ve assented to and agree with came into finer focus, more penetrating comprehension.  So anyways, that was nice.  After that I had a chance to go for a walk into the national trust site, Castle Ward, that’s literally less then a five minutes walk from the front door.  I quickly found a grand spreading old beech which over hung the sea wall, found a comfortable perch twenty feet up, and got lost in thought watching the tide fill up the Lough.  The best word to describe the beeches there along the shore is entish – I didn’t actually talk to the tree while sitting up there though, just myself and God.

Saturday afternoon Doug, Noel, and I took a little drive down the coast, low tide by now.  We checked out a castle, hiked out on the kelp strewn mud flats, and got to within fifty yards of some seals hauled out on to the rocks.  The seals were something else, they look really comical flopping around on the rocks, no grace at all.  But when they get in the water, look out.  I did a little research and these boys can stay under for thirty minutes and go up to fifty meters deep before they need to surface.  I think there must be some really profound spiritual insights about being in the right place and all … but I’ll need to let that stew.  Today there was more good time to read and meditate, as well as a chance for Georges to roundly defeat me in a fierce ping pong match, and to take a run through the Castle Ward grounds.  Here’s a picture of Audley’s Castle, a tower ruins that was along the run.On Friday night before the retreat Doug took Noel, Georges, and I to dinner with some friends of his from church who live in Portaferry across the Lough from Strangford.  We ate at Karen’s place with her boyfriend John and Connor, another guy from church.  The whole experience was quintessentially Irish.  Karen’s place is one of the smallest homes I’ve ever been in.  The seven of us filled up the main room (smaller then my dorm rooms at U of M) there was also a small kitchen, a smaller bathroom, and a loft bedroom reached by a ladder going up into the ceiling.  The house is in a row of small cottages that look out over the Lough which starts just 20 feet from the front door and is opposite a small marina where some sail boats tie in.  With a cheery fire going, good food, and great banter the evening was grand.  John was the second guy this side of the pond that I could talk a bit about the D-town Tigers with, I told him next year the Tigs will be back.  After dinner we hopped on the ferry and made our way across to Strangford. 

The Friday previous I had another excellent dinner at Mags, Elaine, and Maureen’s house (three sisters from Charis).  An eclectic bunch, the party included myself and Elaine from the States, Georges and Joelle from Lebanon, Mags from “the South” (the Republic of Ireland), and four Northern Irish (the Walsh’s  a Charis couple w/children in Uni, Clare a gal from TEC, and Sharon a younger gal widowed last year).  The meal was Spanish in inspiration, and very tasty, but in Irish fashion featured several different potato preparations.  Mags had everyone who came along bring along a photo that means something.  Not having much this side of the pond in the way of photographs I asked my folks to scan a few family pics and send them my way.  I eventually picked this one when me and Beth were the ring bearer and flower girl (respectively) at my Uncle Larry and Aunt Theresa’s wedding.  I think we cut a dashing couple at five and three, plus the choice allowed me to warn about the potential pitfalls of mixing wee lads, tailcoats, and banquet hall toilets.  Another delightful part of the evening was the singing.  After the pictures Mary Walsh called for some Lebanese songs from Georges which needed to be followed by a traditional Irish tune and an American musical song or two.

One final highlight of the last couple weeks was a visit from a couple of the brothers stationed in London.  Andy Pettman was in town for a couple days for meetings.  We took a stroll one afternoon enjoying the botanical gardens and greenhouse, swapping tidbits of natural history and trying to recall the genus or family of various trees and flowers.  Really a blessing to knock some of the rust off the ID skills.  Richard Perry was in town a few more days and we had a chance to go down to the local (most frequented pub, the Malone Lodge in this case) to sit in the comfy chairs and enjoy some frothy Gaelic refreshment while catching up. 

Thanks for taking the time to wade through these musings.  One quick prayer request is for a TEC outreach weekend we’re aiming to have the 24-26 of November.  There have been some facility issues (more precisely, the issues revolve around lack of facilities fitting our stringent criteria, dead cheap).  I’d really appreciate prayers for the invites TECsters will make and the practical details of the weekend.

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