Sacred Spaces ~

As a child I had my holy places where it was quiet and filled with meaning: the church on McKean Street, the Capuchin monastery not far from town . . . It was the feeling of being enveloped in a mysterious, meaningful space.

Rammenau Castle near Dresden ~

At a concert here last evening they played some Scott Joplin and Leroy Anderson while on the walls the portraits of nobles who once lived here looked down at us with knitted brows.

In the Tumult ~

There are places of quiet and rest. 

Munich, Germany 

Lenbachhaus

Helps in Life ~

What this Carthusian monk does,

in silence and solitude,

is my constant strengthening inspiration.

La Grande Chartreuse, Grenoble, France

Morning Walk ~ At the Baltic Sea

Ruegen

We walked on tiny white seashells and sand that morning.

Ochenhausen, Germany ~

Last evening at a concert on Ochsenhausen, Germany, the full quaking power of Schubert's Adagio, Trio Opus 100 overcame me on hearing the first three notes and did not let up until the movement ended.

 

Obama in Berlin ~ June 19, 2013

A humbled President came and spoke, and made no attempt to upstage J.F.K with his famous speech, ..."Ich bin ein Berliner" fifty years ago, June 26, 1653.

Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh ~ G-20 Summit

My hometown is Butler, Pennsylvania. But over here in Germany I tell people I am from Pittsburgh, hoping they can connect. But they seldom can. Now today all I hear on radio and TV is Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh where the G-20 Summit is being held there— as if everyone knows. And what is more, the word Pittsburgh even has a rich resonance when Germans pronounce it! I'm elated.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ~

Invited to lunch at the sedate Pittsburgh Athletic Club across from the University of Pittsburgh. In spite of the horrific heat all the men wore suits and ties. Ladies were well dressed, sheer and colorful. Some had fans. A pianist at a Steinway.