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Hello! Once again, I greet you from Combermere. Because of COVID, fewer news events are happening, so mainly I will be sharing with you some glimpses of our daily life. Mostly, these glimpses will be of some of the ways we recreate.
It is now mid-October, and the leaves have been turning their vibrant autumn colors.
Every year at this time, when the colors are at their peak, we load up into vans and cars and take short leaf tours around the local area.
Even in “normal” years, some of us don’t get away much, even for errands, but this year, because of COVID, this included more of us. So part of the pleasure was just “getting out of the yard.” A few of us also took our elders for whom getting in and out of vans is a challenge, for more individual tours.
As was mentioned in our last issue, this was an incredible year for wild mushrooms, and since I’ve been gathering mushrooms for the past twenty years, I have been thrilled.
One day I decided to bring three shopping bags to fill with mushrooms, which I did. Then, after I had picked them, I realized I would also have to carry them home! All together they weighed forty pounds, but I did it.
One of our members told me she had seen a huge puff ball mushroom in a field. I went to check it out, and sure enough, it was a puff ball, one of the biggest I had ever seen. It weighed in just shy of seven pounds. I cooked it up, and it was enough to feed 50 people at a buffet supper.
As you may know, here at Madonna House, we all have our particular work assignments. Most of us also have some kind of creative outlet to balance our work loads. There is quite a variety among them.
To expose us to new craft skills, our handicraft department sometimes offers a class, and two of them were offered during the past month.
The first, taught by Joanne Weisbeck, was on how to make ribbon fish. This requires a certain type of ribbon; it needs to have some firmness but at the same time be also pliable.
The ribbon gets folded in a certain way to make a fish, which is then suspended on a string and seems to be floating and swimming.
Another class, taught by Meaghan Boyd, was on rock painting. You gather rocks of various sizes and shapes (which are everywhere around here) and paint what you think the shape suggests. The results ranged from a sleeping cat to a little house.
Also mentioned last month was the firing of the wood kiln. Remember we said it was the best firing ever? Well, this month there was another one. Our potters learn from each firing, and this one was even better.
All the pottery was on display both at the main house and at St. Mary’s. Each piece was unique and beautiful. These pieces included mugs, small plates, and varying sized bowls and pots, all in earth tones.
Our potters are Raandi King, Diana Breeze, and Gudrun Schultz. Raandi and Diana are our fulltime nurses, and Gudrun is the head of the main house kitchen. They do pottery in their free time and their love of doing it is evident in their pieces.
Also on display was a small rug woven by Karen Maskiew using the wool from our sheep, wool which was spun and dyed by Anne Marie Murphy and Mary Davis. Karen also produced this in her free time. She works fulltime in our main office.
Another facet of our creativity is music. Maryana Erzinger has, over the years, written music for our liturgical celebrations and special feasts.
Last month, Restoration had an ad and short article about the recently recorded musical setting for the mysteries of the rosary which she composed. She and Fr. Michael Weitl sang it for our CD which can be ordered from MH Publications.
Staff and guests who can play musical instruments find different venues to play together and at times perform. Others are picking up instruments for the first time and teaching themselves.
Mary Davis has taught many people how to spin wool; her latest protégé is Ruth Siebenaler.
Bonnie Staib gave a few book-binding lessons to a few of our guests. She has also given a few classes on Ebru, the Turkish art of paper marbling.
At some point, I will be passing on the skill of wine-making to several younger staff. They are very interested in how I make wine out of everything but grapes (which we don’t grow here).
Throughout our apostolate, skills and memories are being passed on, whether it is crafts or what life was like in our pioneering days. Our elders contain a wealth of information.
Because of the beautiful leaves and the weather we have been having lately, we have been doing a lot of hiking and bike riding.
Also, since we have had to spread out at mealtime, we have been having mostly buffet meals. With these meals, we have the option of eating outside, and most of us did so during the milder weather. As of this writing, a few diehards are continuing to do so.
Speaking of outside, we have had two outdoor movies. The first one, Raiders of the Lost Ark, was projected on the outside of the big St. Mary’s building.
The second was at the main house and was projected on a sheet hung on the outside of a small cabin. We sat on chairs on the lawn and watched E.T., some of us sniffling at all the right places.
Because of COVID, we put up two gazebos, one each at St. Mary’s and the main house. They are used by our priests for spiritual direction with people from the “outside.” This gives them both social distancing and protection from the elements.
There are a couple of drawbacks though. Earlier and earlier, it is getting too dark to see without some kind of portable light source. This gives a new meaning to the phrase, “being left out in the dark.” Plus it is now getting too cold.
We have very few working guests right now but are expecting more to arrive in the coming weeks. Those coming are being asked to follow certain COVID protocols, including taking time for self-isolating before they come.
Well, friends, I think this pretty well wraps up our news this month.
God bless all of you as we and those of you living in these northern climates head into winter.
