Earlier I was out in the driveway waiting for Catherine to come and pick me up in her pickup and transport me to church for eight o’clock Mass. I was a little early or she was a little late so I stood there in the quiet. I was appreciating the peace of the neighborhood and could hear Catherine’s truck from a long way off coming to get me. It wasn’t traffic noise, it was one vehicle noise. How lucky am I/are we to have such a sanctuary as this.

Friday, when our lovely Chinese guests were here they were saying that they lived there in Beijing on the twentieth floor of an apartment building. As I stood in the quiet I was trying to imagine what that would be like. Our lives are so horizontal here. All of our space that we able to roam around in it seems so luxurious, I am going to stop taking that for granted.

Our new priest “come ashore” today, Father David. He seems so enthusiastic about being with us and being on Vashon. And Mass went well and I didn’t have any trouble hearing him with his big voice. So, so far so good, swimmingly even! Father David, yea.

After Mass we went to town and did a little shopping for tapas later. Then we tailgated with our coffee and donut from the supermarket. Nobody does that in the busy parking lot except us. My insurance agent calls that lot the most dangerous place on Vashon. People rush in and rush out with their charcoal and meat but stop to say hi as they pass silly us as we sit and talk about the Sacrament of Reconciliation and what it will be like to be mano e mano with Father David. Catharine has named this Tailgate Theology, I’ll take it, I like it. Suddenly it seems sort of luxurious even.

So another great blog post wrapped up. Time to get out to the corn and get in the race with the weeds. Even that seems somewhat luxurious at the moment. Huh. Well, that’s it here at Raven Ranch. Thinking of you, holding you in prayer, Love, Spacious Felipe.x