Merton Monday and Steve Brown

Mourning

Tough morning. Got here early (a little pass 6 a.m) to pray for a friend having surgery. Later, saw a nurse in distress when her child was born having problems. Child was taken to intensive care.

Great American Medicine Show

Went to the Steve Brown Great American Medicine Show last night at Christ Community Church in Franklin, TN. Peculiar People were there and the musical flair of Buddy Greene. A rather entertaining like Garrison Kellor, but with a more religious stanze. It was "a spiritual extravaganza."

Thomas Merton's Journals

Have been studying Thomas Merton's journal called A Vow of Conversation, his journal from 1964-65. I am interested in the range of topics he covers in this, and other, journals of his. So far he has covered: the weather, his feelings, letters he is responding to, book reviews, current events--the Pope has gone to Palestine which causes a terrible uproar--, doubts, his dreams, the election of a new abbot general, historic reading, the death of a friend, his duties, gifts received, thoughts about war, and his reactions to essays. NOW, I am not through the month of January yet.

This quote was interesting:"The retreat (which is going on now) brings up again the problem of my resentments, my frustrations, my sense of being unjustly treated, cheated in fact, to some extend exploited..............What matters is the struggle to make the right adjustment in my own life.....................If I were more a man of love and spirit, more a man of God, I would have no problems.....One of the sources of futile struggle in the spiritual life is the assumption that one has to become a person without problems, which is, of course, impossible. And if a man is struggling to be without problems in his life, he is beating his head against a brick wall." (p.17-18--A Vow of Conversation)

Five more days to go.