Jesus Prayer

Here's a lovely quote I came across while preparing for the didactic on the Jesus Prayer today.  The speaker is the pilgrim, from the Russian novels The Way of the Pilgrim and The Pilgrim Continues his Way.

Referring to the various contexts in which the Jesus Prayer can be prayed, he says:

"...he who has received the gift to revere and glorify the power of the Almighty expresses the word Lord with special feeling and delight. . . He who has received a secret outpouring of love into his heart is filled with sweetness and delight as he exclaims Jesus Christ. . . In him who has steadfast faith in the divinity of Jesus Christ, who is one with the Father, the Spirit enkindles even greater faith when he expresses the words Son of God.  And finally he who has the gift of humility and deep awareness of his weakness utters the words have mercy on me with great intensity." (115)

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me!

Returning Home

Around 8 in the morning we got up today, gathered our stuff, and checked out of the hotel.  By 9:30 or so we arrived at the Essential Bakery near Gasworks, where we ate breakfast.  Afterwards, Benja, Jen and Nicole drove to Fremont to walk around a bit, while I stayed at the bakery and did some work for my chaplaincy course.

Close to noontime they returned, and shortly after that we went on our way, northbound on the I5, stopping in at the outlet mall in Tulalip about an hour later.  I always enjoy going here.  Today I bought a couple Benetton ts, as well as some boxers, shorts and a s/s polo from Banana Republic.  I was actually looking for some dressier stuff - button shirts, pants - but neither of the stores had the size I was looking for.  Actually, the selection at both stores was rather disappointing this time around.  I usually go to the Adidas store also, but today didn't have time.

We noticed an Olive Garden restaurant near the mall, so we decided to eat an early dinner there, rather than drive home and stop along the way.  My goodness, I know some people think the Olive Garden is lame, but I like it, I really like it.  I had grilled shrimp caprese (no meats 'til Easter!).  I'm not a fan of seafood, but these grilled shrimps were really tasty.  My only complaint with the Olive Garden is that their food is too saucy.  Everything's drenched in sauce; too drenched.  But I think that's my complaint of restaurants in general, not just the Garden.  The unanimous highlight (at least as far as Benja and I are concerned) of the meal was the desert: italian donuts, or zeppoli, as they're known in Italian.  The order came with about 10 "donuts", of which Benja and I finished 8 (Jen and Nicole only wanted 1 each - I'll never understand that).  I would go back to the Garden even if the only item they have on the menu is the zeppolies! 

We got home at close to 10pm, quite tired.  I turned in almost immediately.  As usual, I pretty much just dropped everything on the floor, to be cleaned up over the next week or two.  Strange.  It takes me less than 2 hours to pack my luggage for a trip, and then it takes me about 2 weeks to unpack upon my return.  I'm not sure why that is: maybe because deep inside I'm sad that the "vacation" is over and I need to get back to real life....

Seattle: Sights And Sounds

We had a wonderful day today touring the city.  Usually when we come to this great city we go to Pike's Place Market, and while I've never regretted going there, I'm glad we didn't go there this time around. It was time for a change, so this time around we took in some of the other sights that the city has to offer.

In summary, we visited a couple of parks, a canal, and a hip district.  Along the way, we ate some sandwiches, and unfortunately, we finished our day with a a so-so Italian dinner.  But all in all, a lovely day.  The weather, while chilly, cooperated with overcast skies but virtually no rain.

Golden Gardens Park

We began our day here, based on the advice of the concierge of our hotel.  It was good advice.  We walked along the beach for a good 30 minutes, enjoying the breezes, taking in the serenity and peace such a setting offers.

Ballard Locks

Jennifer has on a few occasions suggested that we go to view the Ballard Locks, a canal-like system linking the salt-waters of the Puget Sound with the fresh waters of Union Lake.  So we went there next, and watched some ships navigate the "locks."

Fremont

On our way to Gasworks, we stopped in at trendy Fremont.  To me, this neighbourhood has a mixture of various Vancouver neighbourhoods all blended into one: it has the outdoor adventure shops of Broadway between Cambie and Main; it has some of the interesting eateries and coffee shops of the Main St. corridor; and it has some of the eccentricities of Commercial Drive too, like a statue of the Soviet leader Stalin, right in the middle of a small square!

Here at Fremont we ate our lunch at a sandwich spot.  Very yummy!

Gasworks

This is my second visit to Gasworks, and in many ways the experience was similar to the first visit: it was chilly, windy, a few raindrops, but even so worthwhile, because of the view.  The park is located at the north end of Union Lake (not too far from the I5), where the Seattle Gas Company previously operated a gasification plant.  The remnants of the plant are still there, and add a unique aspect to the park not only historically, but visually.  Notice the rainbow in the first picture: it was that kind of day!

The most disappointing part of our day was actually our dinner.  We were downtown, tired, and not in a mood to look around for a long time and so picked an Italian restaurant attached to a mall (we should've known better), mainly because it was close to where we were staying and didn't require much driving/walking around.  The food was very average.

Tomorrow we go back home, but not before a good breakfast at the Essential Baking Company near Gasworks.  On the way home we also want to visit a wine store and the outlet mall.  If we have time, we'll eat dinner at the Olive Garden too.  We aim to be home by around 9pm.

In Seattle For The Weekend

This afternoon Benja, Nicole, Jennifer and I drove down to Seattle, to spend the weekend here.  We found a good, central hotel at a great price, and so we plan on enjoying a weekend away from home.

We arrived here late, around 10pm, after a very long wait at the border, and a quick (and futile) stop at the outlet mall along the way.

Ash Wednesday Lunch

Today is the first day of Lent, the 40-day pilgrimage to the glorious death and resurrection of Jesus.

I observed this very meaningful day by attending the 10:30 service at the hospital chapel this morning.  Father Boniface led the service.  A gentle and kind man he is.

For lunch, I went to Maurya Indian restaurant on Broadway near Burrard, with my classmates and supervisor.  The food there is fantastic, especially now that I'm off meat and coffee.  The vegetarian options there were quite amazing, including jalfrezi, malal kofta, palak panir,  and my favourite, aloo gobi.  Of course naan bread and chai are two other must-haves, not to mention the two desserts, kheer and gulab jamun.

Snowshoeing With Jen And Sonia

Another amazing day on the Vancouver slopes!  Whereas last time I went to Cypress Mountain, this time around I went to Grouse.  What a wonderful playground we live in here!  Thank your Lord for your marvelous creation.  The heavens indeed declare your glory!

After we finished snowshoeing, Sonia, Jen and I went and warmed up - well, I had a beer - while watching the sun go down.