Sabbatical Tales

...and FINDING SABBATICAL  OCTOBER 10, 2021 We both recently read a novel,  Finding Francis, which follows the story of a man seeking peace in his role as a pastor. He journeys to Italy to visit an uncle, and discovers St. Francis of Assisi as a model of sorts. While we didn't quite make it to Assisi this visit, we have appreciated the many images and references to Francis over these weeks. It's amazing how his legacy of simplicity and joy has captured the global imagination over generations. It has taken awhile for us to settle into sabbatical and I think we've both recognized that the very idea is to receive these rhythms into our lives and welcome them, not just "do sabbatical" and then be done. So while we eye the end of our time in Europe, it's with hope that we will do some things differently. At breakfast today we talked about ways we might more fully appreciate God's gift of life by adopting slower more intentional patterns. Maybe we'll be usin...

  FIRENZE OCTOBER 7, 2021 Florence is such an elegant old city. Thankfully, it's warmer than when we were here in 1978! I remember that early January bitter cold. I huddled by a vent in our hostel hallway to dry my hair after washing it in a cold shower. The matron was not happy with me and I was brusquely shooed back to the room we all shared. Tim and I are definitely in a different place in every way these days. We've tried to locate the building in which we stayed, but our memories are fuzzy. We do remember, however, walking into the Duomo with awe; and visiting Giotto's Bell Tower with the famous lecture of North Park's Zenos Hawkinson resounding in each of our minds. It was inspirational then, as it is now. We actually got to climb up to the inside and outside of the Duomo, all 463 steps. A convoluted and strenuous climb, but absolutely worth the effort. We were dumbstruck by the view and the magnificence of the cathedral. How did they b...

TUSCANY II  OCTOBER 6, 2021 Let me tell you about the Medieval Tower we stayed in for two nights in Radda. We were told it would be a tower but it was actually the very end of a stretch of tall stone homes (4 or 5 stories each ) on the narrow streets of a walled medieval town, Radda-in-Chianti. The first flight of stairs led to a living room and kitchen, second flight led to a bedroom and sitting room, and the top floor had been renovated into a master bedroom with a terrace looking out over the town and the Tuscan hills. Each floor had large airy windows on 3 sides, opening up over the streets where shop vendors and offices opened mid-morning. The views were stunning, the townspeople were friendly and the streets were quiet and peaceful at night. And we were not even 25 meters from the church bell tower, and could watch it from the terrace. It became another couple of days measured by rich, resounding music. Radda even had a kind o...