Happy 4th!!

How does one celebrate the 4th of July in a monastery?? Quite similar to how all of you out there might celebrate it as well. We had a picnic, played some games, community movie time, and even went out to watch some fireworks. See, I'm sure you can spot some similarities. However, I think there is something special about it here.

There is such an awareness of how important it is to remember how we are all connected, not just here in the states but everywhere in the world. We remember how blessed we are to have the freedoms that we do, because there are so many in the world who may never experience any of that. It is important to remember that we must not abuse this freedom and confuse it with power, both around the world and with our own citizens, especially in light of what is making headlines today (healthcare, etc.). I see a lot of things through a different lens as a result of my experiences this year. Wednesday is usually my reflection day, and even though I didn't use it the traditional way, I can say it turned out to be extremely reflective.

I did mention we went to see some fireworks with one mentor and our director. I can check off my list the experience "watching fireworks from a McDonald's parking lot" and "finally getting to use those sparklers" :) Oh, I almost forgot, out of the four of us nobody remembered to bring a fob so we were locked out at 11pm. However, after a lengthy game of charades we were finally let back in! Never a dull moment.