I was able to schedule a solo retreat at Subiaco Hermitage at the St. Benedict's Monastery in St. Joseph, Minnesota the final weekend of my leave. My stay at the hermitage lasted two days and two nights - I was alone but filled with the friendship of nature. The towering trees of the monastery woods, the fields, the paths, and the sounds of night were my companions.
I also was on the edge of a college campus, allowing me to sneak into a church of sorts: the library. While browsing the shelves, I came upon the work of a poet I always enjoy encountering: Mary Oliver. I found this gem below in her book A Thousand Poems.
The time at Subiaco was wonderful trickling stream of simple activities. Walks in the woods, small meals at my small little table, building a day around what to read and when to read it, and a winding drive home off the beaten path (i.e. the freeway) were my small things that weekend. The collection of these simple activities created a powerful and moving experience for me. Oliver's poem below, Today, felt like just the right way to describe this time away.
Today
Today I'm flying low and I'm
not saying a word.
I'm letting all the voodoos of ambition sleep.
The world goes on as it must
the bees in the garden rumbling a little,
the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten.
And so forth.
But I'm taking the day off.
Quiet as a feather.
I hardly move though really I'm traveling
a terrific distance.
Stillness. One of the doors
into the temple.
-Mary Oliver
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