A Contemplative Adventure

In just less than five weeks, I'll be spending about four days at Mepkin Abbey, hanging out (by myself?) and doing who knows what. (If you know who Thomas Merton is...Mepkin is the Trappist monastery founded by Merton's own brothers from Gethsemani in Kentucky).

I am so, so looking forward to this...

..no work stress..
..no demands for my time..
..no computers..
..no media or advertisements or commercialism..
..no distractions but my own mind (which is distracting enough, for sure)..

Just me, nature, God and a bunch of monks. Who don't generally talk. (The monks, that is...I'm counting on God talking.)

I'm especially glad to be going for Easter Week - it just seems like a good ending for this season of Lent.

I'll also be giving the world a play-by-play of monastic life via Twitter.

(So just kidding...i don't think Hugh reads this but that was for him :P)

fairchocolate

As a try-to-be-socially-conscious chocolate freak, I was excited to see this (from the Not For Sale blog):

In a landmark announcement Cadbury Chocolate, one of the major chocolate manufactures primarily operating in the U.K. stated that they would certify that their dairy-milk chocolate is Fair Trade by the end of summer 2009. In a statement issued Today, Chief Executive for Cadbury, Todd Stitzer said:
"This is an historic moment for our company. I am proud that the nation’s favourite chocolate bar will display the FAIRTRADE Mark. I was in Ghana last month and saw how vital it is that businesses support their partners and the communities they live in. We believe that by joining forces with the Fairtrade Foundation, we can further improve living standards and conditions for farmers and farming communities, and create a sustainable supply of high quality cocoa for Cadbury."

I think it's kind of strange that they're so proud about it and yet are only doing this for one of their lines...but, a step in the right direction is better than no step at all!


Now if only America's biggest brands would get on board...check out the 2009 Chocolate Co. Scorecard.

videos are fun.

This first one is from Valentines' Day dinner...Julie was demonstrating to Julianne, Robyn and me the many languages in which one can say "I love you" (from a card she had been saving for two years):

And this second one is quite historic - a peek at the first ceremonial ritual conducted by two founding Shannonites of the new religion Shannonism...(you'll have to forgive the camera-shaking; despite the awesome solemnity of the moment, I couldn't help but be moved):