A grand weekend

I'm in the Northwest for a couple of weeks - primarily to attend our community's spring Assembly, which took place this past weekend.  It was a joy!  Our presenter, Sr. Tere Maya, had a lot to say about interculturality and the joys and challenges of making community across cultures - a very important message for us, as our recent new members and inquirers come from an amazing background of cultures (Kenyan, Portlandian, South Korean, New Jersey-ite, Nigerian, English, Haitian, Indian).  This is riches, indeed, but also fertile ground for confusion and misunderstanding.  Thanks to Tere for her humor, great stories, and challenging concepts.

In the photo above, Tere is on the left, talking to Srs. Ede Reif (center) and Mary Keough.

The other high points of the weekend were our annual Jubilee dinner (followed by dancing for the hardy ones) and the covenanting of seven new Associates. 

They are, l-r, Laura Trettevik, Bob Scheri, Kathy and Max Lewis, Ken Otto, and Sharon and Lloyd Lewis, a wonderful group (two are friends from PeaceHealth, Laura and Bob; I know Kathy and Max from my days at Rose of Lima House; and Ken, Sharon and Lloyd are new friends).  They're each of them a gift to our community life, and I pray that this new connection will bring them great peace and much joy.