This Week in Madonna House - Sep 19-25

I apologize to my regular readers for being so sparse on the blogging this past week or two. It has been a busy time in my life, and there have been days where I have been away from the Internet altogether. Hopefully I will be back to something resembling a regular blogging rhythm soon.

Madonna House is in an 'ordinary time', I would say. On the work front the big project remains the harvest, with potatoes being the major crop brought in this week. Three afternoons everyone who could went to the farm to dig potatoes. While I haven't heard any figures, it seems to have been a good harvest.

Beyond that, our ordinary life continues apace. The addition to the farm house (added living space for our somewhat over-crowded farmers) now has siding and is starting to look positively finished... on the outside at least. Still lots of interior work to do, not the least of which is connecting the new addition to the old farmhouse with a door!

Outside of the work scene, probably our biggest concerns in MH have been events outside of MH this week. Locally, there was a terrible tragedy which sent shockwaves through the whole Valley - a triple homicide in and around nearby Wilno. In a small community like this, everyone either knew one or all of the victims, or knows someone who knew them, not to mention the man who committed the crime, so the emotional weight of it has been very heavy for our neighbours and friends. It has been a great call for prayer for us here in MH.

Of course like everyone else the other focus of our attention has been Pope Francis' trip to the United States and the World Meeting of Families. Four of our members are in attendance at the latter with a book table, while many of us watched the former as we could, or read the transcript of his address to congress. We are all united in prayer with you for many graces and conversions of heart to flow from this historic event.

Beyond that, life in MH is as normal and quiet as can be right now. The weather has turned sharply cool, and we are appreciating the fall colours as a result. As I mentioned in previous blog posts, it is a season of transitions in MH, with quite a number of our members being moved from one house to another, some houses changing directors, and so forth, all of which creates a certain energy in the house - new faces in the dining room, leave takings of others, and the like. Our new applicants are settling into their rhythm of classes, work, and life, about which I may say more later.

So... what to say? Life is good, life is full, life is quiet, life is busy... life is life here, and we unite our lives in prayer with your lives, hoping that all of us together may continue to build the kingdom of God together in our various ways.