Apr 2018 The Road to Daybreak A Spiritual Journey by Henri J M Nouwen

(Continue from) A Year full of Grace   A day of farewell. My year in Trosly is coming to an end. On Tuesday I am going to Belgium to visit Cardinal Daneels, on Wednesday and Thursday I will be in Holland to say good-bye to my father, brothers, sister and on Friday I will be on my way back to Boston. During the past few days I have been trying to evaluate my time at L'Arche. Was it worth it? I didn't write as much as I had planned; I didn't pray as much as I had hoped; I didn't learn French as well as I had desired; and I didn't come to know the handicapped people as intimately as I had wanted. And still the year has been full of graces. The first grace was getting back in touch with Europe. Spending time in France, Germany, Belgium, Holland, and England has helped me to feel strongly connected with my roots and to understand in more depth the spiritual tradition of which I am a part. I feel as if I have come into closer touch with the great movement of the spirit of God that has shaped the hearts and minds of many of my European contemporaries, and I have come to trust their spiritual institutions as the main source of my own ministry. The second grace is friends. If there is any name I would like to give this year, it is "the year of friendships." Much of my time has been dedicated to making new friends and deepening old friendships. Sometimes I felt guilty about spending so little time doing things and so much time "just talking." But now I know that many of the bonds that have been formed have created a mysterious network of affection that will allow me not only to speak with new vigour about God's first love, but also to act more simply, directly and unambiguously in the service of Jesus, whose mission was to reveal that first love to us. The many old friends who came here from the United States and discovered L'Arche with me, and the many new friends who were given to me, have truly showed me that God became flesh and that the divine love becomes tangible in the affection of God's people. I will never think about this year without a deep gratitude for my friendship with Nathan and our long hours of sharing our joys and pains. Often it seems to me that the main reason for my being in Trosly was to be given this friendship as the safe context for a new vocation. Whatever heppens at Daybreak, I am not going to be alone in my struggle, and Nathan will be there with me to keep me faithful to my promises. I will also never think about the year without thinking about the friendship of Jean Vanier, Madame Vanier, Simone, Barbara, Therese-Monique, Jean-Louis, and the Peeters family. This afternoon Jean-Louis invited all of us to his foyer, La Vigne, where I celebrated the Eucharist. A reception followed with kind words and a joyful dinner. As I felt overwhelmed by the affection shown to me, I tried to receive it as an expression of God's generous love and an affirmation of being called to L'Arche.

- To Be Continued - © Copyright Shalom 2018. All rights reserved.