Since I got back from Italy, I’ve been thinking a lot about gratitude and how much appreciation I have for the history of Tuscany, the 15th-century (and older) churches, Basilicas, and other holy places we were blessed to visit.
The spirit of each church was palpable and alive and I sat, often alone in a pew, while my group went up or down the (very steep) stone steps to towers or crypts. I sensed the thousands of others who’ve sat in the same place in reverence to what they considered holy for 100s of years.
For me, it’s not about religion, after all the Catholic Church was responsible for the Inquisition, etc etc etc. It’s just about the fact that these places were where people came to worship (and still do) and that’s what I feel. I love to sit in that energy even if my concept of a Higher Power isn’t exact, the essence is the same. I sit in reverence when I am there.
We got a chance to go to the very top of Florence ( yup I hobbled all the way up for this one) to hear a group of monks sing Gregorian chants at Vespers.
We all settled into the chapel after being admitted by a very stern large man whose job it was to keep everyone in line, and boy did he do that!
I genuinely felt the music and the reverence I had for all of it as these very old monks sang the evening prayers. The acoustics of the building gave their singing a wide and beautiful resonance.
Then, in a silent prayer part, one of the monks let go a loud resounding um, well, let’s name it Holy Wind! They seemed nonplussed by it, likely it’s happened before, and carried on singing.
I turned to look at my group behind me and everyone was trying so hard not to laugh. I started shaking and Marc pinched my hand so hard and I had to think of something so sad like my dog dying a few years ago so I wouldn’t go into hysterics.
Of course, once we all got back into the bus after walking down the steep hill in relative reverent silence, I’m sure all of Florence heard us laughing our heads off through the closed glass windows.
So what is the point I’m making here?
What I took away from it is that it reminds us of our collective imperfect humanity. No one is perfect, humans are capable of a fart even in the most reverent meaningful circumstances. Life is messy, filled with moments we’re not expecting. Control is a big illusion.
So having a sense of humor and making space for all of life’s experiences is something worth cultivating.
All of us were laughing at the hilarity of the moment, not at the monk’s moment of intestinal distress. And concurrently, we could still hold space for the deep gratitude and reverence we shared that just also happened to include a long sustained surprise note of Holy Wind.
It’s just gotta be ok that God and gas can also go together.
Bless you for reading this and I hope you got a chuckle out of it. I’m grateful for you reading my blogs since there are so many out there!!!
