Wayne Smith's occasional blog of pilgrimages and journeys

Sunday, March 15, 2009

HOB Day 2

After morning prayer and table conversations, the House turned our attention to completing the conversation with Bishop and Brueggemann. We devoted the morning to this work.

Following Eucharist and lunch, we heard a sobering presentation about the economy from Warren McFarlan, a devoted Episcopalian from the Diocese of Massachusetts who serves on the faculty of the Harvard Business School. We have all heard the hard news about an economy gone very bad. But Professor McFarlan, in about an hour, sketched out the details leading up to the current situation, the depth of the problem, and how we might emerge from it. Honest talk without a tone of doom and gloom.

Then Rep. David Price, from the 4th Congressional District of North Carolina, addressed the House to give some perspective on the current political situation.

Then at six p.m. began twenty-four hours of Sabbath, the only commitment being the celebration of the Eucharist at ten a.m. on Sunday.

This respite comes at a welcome moment for me, because the last thirty-six hours have given me a lot to process. The paucity of detail in my writing suggests that I have not yet made sense of all that I have taken in. Grateful for the pause button.

I am a little stir crazy from all the sitting around, and would be glad to get outdoors for some exercise. The setting in the mountains of Western North Carolina is, theoretically, well-suited for the likes of this. I say theoretically, because it is pouring rain at present (Sunday morning) and about 38 degrees. This is my third visit to Kanuga in March, and this is the sort of weather I have found here every time.

2 comments:

Lydia Agnew Speller said...

Lovely to read you. Sorry about the rain. St. Louis is warm and sunny today.

Lydia

Joe Chambers said...

So is Columbia!