THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!
Because of everyone's continuing donations, we were able to get the Retreat Center's old 1999 Ranger up and running again! This saves a lot of backbreaking work and many many extra hours, from hauling materials around the facilities for general upkeep, to making the job of keeping up with landscaping and cleaning. You don't realize how many steps are saved when you are working on one end of the property, and the tools are at the other end (especially when yours truly forgets to grab a tape measure, hammer, or level, or shovels, or nails and 100 other items I've made multiple trips walking across 40 acres)!!
When I was here last September, I made some snide comments to Fr. Tom after he gave me lessons on how to start their truck (scoot up on the seat, stick your left hand through the steering wheel to grasp the column shifter firmly, and while violently jiggling it, turn the key repeatedly back and forth until the engine turns over. And most importantly, make sure the emergency brake is engaged as you are not sure if the truck is in gear or not)!
One thing I should remember, don't make snide comments to a Priest, as it probably won't end well for me! I told Fr. Tom last September that if I was able to return after the first of the year, fixing this "truck" (hazard!) was going to be high on the priority list. So, thanks to generous donors back home and around the country, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
Now, on to the next project, of building a room full of clothes rod poles and shelves, as Dee, an incredible volunteer, has a ton of clothing that has been donated for their community outreach programs, and it needs to be organized so that families can easily access things they might need, without having to sort through a mountain of clothing, coats, shoes, etc.
And as promised, I am also working in the evenings trying to compile the 300(+) pages I have written over the past twenty years. If not to see if there is any value to allowing anyone other than my eyes to read it, then just as an cathartic exercise for myself. When my Mom lived with us after Dad passed away, she used to read some of my poems and would remark (like any good Mother would) "you should put all your poems in a book for others to read, if not for you, then for Taylor, so she could have that after you are gone". I always loved hearing the stories of when she and Dad were young, as a child and as a young bride, and all the stories Becky's Mom and Dad told me over the years, and I thought what happens to all these family stories, both good and bad, after you die? I promised her I would do it soon, but as usual, life generally got in the way, and I never got around to it. Mom passed away a few years later, before I ever published that poetry book, and I made myself sit down and complete it as a Memorial to her, and the unfulfilled promise I had made. In my prayers to them now, and all the family members and friends, both living and gone, I swore I'd do my best to never make that mistake again. I suppose, in a sense, that's one of the reasons I'm camped out in this New Mexico high desert, in this very quiet, very spiritual place; to try and calm my mind and heart down long enough to allow this unfulfilled promise to pour out finally.
Thank you everyone, for your continuing support, prayers and encouragement! And Thank God for a working truck!!
It has been very enjoyable to have you with us here at Holy Cross Retreat Center, Jerry. Your pleasant disposition and willingness to use your skills has been felt and seen in many ways. As I walk around the property and the buildings I will remember your contribution and be grateful. I have also enjoyed our conversations and your presence with the friars for morning and evening prayer. You have enriched us in many ways!
Tom Smith OFM Conv.
director