Therefore, behold I, God, will allure her,
and will lead her into the wilderness;
and I will speak to her heart…
Hosea 2.14
Before my aunt died a few years ago, she asked me if there was anything in particular I would like from her possessions. (She was a matter-of-fact woman, and her approaching death did not dismay her.)
I chose a painting I had always loved, and I chose a book.
The book is a few years older than me and I have been fascinated by it from childhood. I can feel my little white hands turning the pages then, just as my older, veined hands do now.
It is a simple book, consisting of 90 photographs reflecting life in Benedictine and Cistercian monastic communities in Europe during the 1940s. It has a wonderful introductory essay on monastic life by Thomas Merton.
It came to me that I could share some of this beauty with you by the modern and rather incongruous means of YouTube. So armed with my trusty scanner I have made my first foray into the world of video production, and here is the result. I hope you like it.
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HeyJules 08.14.07 at 3:58 pm
That was beautiful, Tess. Thank you.
Abbey of the Arts 08.14.07 at 4:38 pm
Tess, this is so lovely and very moving. You did a wonderful job with this and the photos are great — I especially loved the ones of the artist monks.
Mind if I post it over at the Abbey later, with a link of course?
Tess 08.14.07 at 7:47 pm
Thank you both. Christine, yes I thought the artist monks would strike a chord! Please feel free to post it.