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.
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