My final day in Kansas City was clear and cold. Morning temperature was around 12, cold but an improvement over Saturday when it was 4. I picked up my sister Mary and we went to Mass at St. James, the parish where I grew up and where Mary still belongs and is very active. It was good to see that attendance has been increasing over the past several years. There was a time when I doubted that the parish would be able to continue because the membership had gotten so small. It continues to do excellent work in an important and stressed area of the city. Mary and Bob have provided wonderful leadership to the parish and social justice work.
After Mass, I stopped by several stores to pick up several high fiber food items for Mom. I then constructed a little work sheet for her to help keep track of how much fiber she is eating.
After spending some time on FaceTime with Brynne, I packed up and stopped by Bob and Mary's on the way to the airport. Luckily Matt, my nephew, and his wife Amy had stopped by to visit his parents and so I got to see them as well.
Landed back in Rochester around 11:30 with the newly fallen 10 or so inches of snow. My good friend, Richard, picked me up and took me home. Thanks Richard, and good by to all until the next trip in a couple of weeks to North Carolina, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
Saturday morning was cold and colder. The temperature was 4 degrees when I woke up with a wind chill of -7. I made the two hour to Clyde under a cloudless and cold sky. Fortunately there was no snow although apparently some is on the way for Sunday, the day I leave. When I arrived in Clyde, I found Sr. Paula looking for all the world like a giant cranberry snowman.
We spent the morning visiting and sharing our spiritual journeys. At 85 she continues to be a learner and wonderer and provides me with a role model of what it means to be fully human and faithful. She continues to have a wonderful and warm sense of humor. I attended the retirement community Mass and then joined them for the noon meal. It was delicious and was topped off with some cherry pie a la mode. I sneaked a second piece later in the afternoon.
We then drove up to the mother house to see the new entrance. I could hardly recognize the place with all the demolition and new construction. It was all done with the care and attention to detail that I have come to recognize typically "Benedictine" but which this community does even better than most. We visited the chapel which was not part of the renovation. It is such a remarkable place to find in the middle of Northwest Missouri. We also drove over to Conception Abbey to see the new retreat center that is under construction.
I drove back to Kansas City and then joined Mom and my sisters and brothers-in-law for a dinner at Panera, one of Mom's favorite places. We ended up spending almost two hours eating and visiting...and laughing a lot. Mom doesn't like having her picture taken but I got some nice shots of her displaying her lively smile.
Friday was a busy day. I began with coffee with Anola at Dunn Brothers Coffee, her favorite coffee shop. We talked about everything as we always do. If I didn't appreciate having an older sister growing up, I certainly do now. I was happy to learn that she has finished the first draft of her current novel and is now revising. Her commitment to her writing is exemplary.
Next I had lunch with Terry and Ruth Noel, a friend and classmate from high school and college. Even though he is wearing that marvelous hat from Austria--they went on a river cruise last fall--he isn't doing it hide any hair loss! His head of hair looks like it did when he was twenty. I can't say the same for myself. It was great being with them and enjoying the great barbecue at Jack Stack's in the warehouse district just north of the Union Station.
After lunch I was supposed to meet my brother-in-law Peter to take some photos. This something we usually do when I visit. Last time we went to the new Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, a quite dramatic structure, that fills me with pride for my home town. You can see those photos here. This time, however, Peter wasn't feeling up to par so we decided to skip the photo trip to the Liberty Memorial and the newly expanded and renovated World War I Museum. Instead I went over to their house to visit and talk photography. However, since I was in the area for lunch, I did stop at the Memorial. It was cold and very windy with wind chill in the teens and I decided to take one picture rather than three for a panorama. As you can see, it was a wonderfully clear if cold day.
Mary invited me to be her guest at a Valentine's Day fund raiser for the local American Friends Service Committee. This is one of Mary's many peace and justice activities. It was wonderful to experience the gathering and especially the folk/protest music provided and to see how much those there loved and appreciated my sister.
In addition to photos, I captured some video of the singing which was quite entertaining and moving. Below is a sample, of "We Shall Overcome" which has become a standard for peace and justice protests.
Sean came by and picked me up at Mom's around 6:00. We went to Starbuck's to get coffee and then go back to Mom's apartment. We visited until Mom woke up. Sean had to leave for his meeting at Kansas City Power & Light. It is unlikely that I will see him again this trip since his flight leaves around 4:00 and he has some debriefing to do before he leaves. It was great having him around for these two days.
I went down to the Plaza to view an exhibit at the Christian Community Church, a Frank Lloyd Wright designed building. The exhibit is called Grace Before Dying and tells the story of an inmate staffed hospice program at Angola Penitentiary in Louisiana. It has changed the culture of the prison and the lives of many who live there and who work there. Very impressive.
Back to Grand Court and dinner downstairs with Mom along with Nadine, Wally, and Mary. The dining room is certainly not crowded. Winter is hard on the residents with illnesses ranging from ordinary colds to more serious issues.
After dinner, we came back to the apartment and are now enjoying John Wayne in Red River on TCM.
Arrived last night around 7:30. Sean got here around 10:00. We got together at 6:00 am for coffee and breakfast at Starbuck's at Ward parkway.
Mom is feeling well and we had a nice visit last night. Today will bring lunch with Sean on the Plaza and then a family dinner tonight at Mom's.
We returned to Grand Court and visited with Mom for a couple of hours and then headed out for lunch on the Plaza. As we were getting into the car, Mary called and said she and Bob had just finished up at the doctor's office and asked if we were free for lunch. Perfect timing. We met at Sahara on 51st between Oak and Brookside, one of Bob's favorite places to eat. We visited as only one can with Aunt Mary: a lot of laughter and stories.
Sean explains sthe mysteries of fiber rich cereal
We stopped at Trader Joe's on the way back so Sean could pick up some food for Mom, especially anything with a lot of fiber. He carefully explained each item to her. We all hope that she will like them enough to eat them regularly as two doctors and their staffs have repeatedly advised her to do. After spending some time look at the photos on the Kodak frame Sean and Julie and Sam gave her, we got ready for Anola and Peter, Bob and Mary, and Louisa to come over for dinner and visiting.
We talked a visited for over two hours. Everyone was very pleased to visit with Sean and hear about Julie and especially Sam. Sean stopped in to reserve the guest apartment for the week of Mom's 100th birthday this summer only to learn that Julie had already reserved it. She is always on top of things.
