La Santa Messa

I shall probably get in trouble or be found offensive for skipping school today. There's no class, but instead a field trip for cultural learnings here in lovely Umbria. It seems to me to be the sort of thing for the average student at the place, who seems to be much younger than me. Sorry; I did my semester abroad bit. Not that I was attentive to my cultural learning then either, but you can't go back and change the past. So instead of trudging around in the hot rain learning to appreciate the particular genius of the Etruscans, or whatever, I'm here at the friary planning to study my morning away. Besides, in my defense, I have started to read I Promessi Sposi (in English.) That's my nod to my cultural appreciation.

On the positive side, it was a grand thing this morning, for the feast of Blessed Florida Cevoli, for me to be the principal celebrant at Mass in Italian for the first time. (Florida (1685-1767) was a Capuchin Poor Clare. She succeeded St. Veronica Giuliani as abbess.) I was grateful to have my first time on an easy day; it was just the other foreign priests and a few other friars assisting, and no homily was necessary. For the Universal Prayer, they have a book of prepared intentions. It's actually pretty good; in the States I'm usually not impressed with such things. I'm really struggling with emphasis and pronunciation, but I think I did o.k. for where I am in the learning process. After Mass one of the friars complimented me on my voice projection, which was probably his way of saying something nice when he couldn't say that I had said the words properly.

Grateful for all that, off I go to the books, so as to use well this time when I should be at school. Here's a picture of another favorite friary sight. As I come up the stairs from my room in the morning, on my way to the chapel for Morning Prayer--this is about six or so--out of the window on the landing I get this view of the Basilica of St. Francis.