Last Monday, I checked out of the blog-world for a few days - and my husband and I left to enjoy some quiet time in the "high desert" of northern NM.
More precisely, on Monday afternoon we arrived at the Monastery of Christ in the Desert in Abiquiu, NM, where we remained until Friday morning.
The monastery itself is set at the edge of the national forest along the Rio Chama, in a canyon 13 miles away from the nearest main road. Solitude and silence are virtually guaranteed by its remote location.
It's an amazing place, in every sense. I know I can't do it justice in words, but here goes...
If you know me well, you know I have an undying love for NM. Yes, undying. I love it here, I love the land, I love the people, and I love how hot it is in the summer. When I'm lucky enough to find myself in the northern part of the state, as I was last week, I sometimes find myself thinking that when God dreamed up perfection, he brought it into being in this landscape. Yes. I love it that much. And the area around Christ in the Desert is definitely part of that God-given awesomeness. It's incredibly beautiful, full of wildlife, with breathtaking views painted against the bright blue sky.
The monastery itself is an amazing place as well, of course. The Benedictine monks who reside there offer wonderful hospitality - they don't just pray, they can cook, too, haha! If you stay at the monastery, you are the beneficiary of some really great cooking. I mean seriously.
But most importantly, guests may join the monks for prayer and Mass in the lovely abbey church. They chant the Liturgy of the Hours, beginning with Vigils (the Office of Readings) at 4:00 a.m.... yep, 4:00 a.m.... needless to say, I only made it to Vigils once. My husband went every day. I'm pathetic in the morning, though I did manage to make it to Morning Prayer every day at 5:45 a.m. (Notice I did say they chant the Liturgy of the Hours... the chants of the monks at Christ in the Desert have been recorded - their latest CD just hit Amazon... if you're a fan of chant music, you'll definitely enjoy it, as I have.)
Guests are also invited to take part in the monks' work around the monastery for a specified period each day. We helped out in the garden, watering and planting, which was a total blast!
Spending a few days at the monastery is a serious change of pace for most of us who are used to a fast pace and lots of noise. There's no cell phone signal in that blessed canyon. No wifi, either. And oh yeah, the guest rooms don't have TV. They don't even have electricity (battery powered lanterns take care of lighting at night) - but yes, there is hot water and gas-fired heat. :-P
Then there's the silence. The silence is amazing. Truly amazing. Truly blessed. The monks observe as much silence as possible - even meals are taken in silence.
I realize that the idea of silence - though not "strict" silence (where no one talks at all) - seems pretty daunting, in some sense. But I tend to be sensitive to high levels of noise, and the idea of being somewhere so quiet for a few days was actually exciting to me, as strange as that may sound. No phone calls to bother me. No TV to irritate me. Nothing to distract me from the present moment, from what was in front of me, from being in the presence of God. We should never underestimate the importance or power of silence. Christ in the Desert is probably the most peaceful, most prayerful place I have ever been in my life.
In short, it was an awesome and incredibly blessed week in every sense. I'll be going back. This may have to be a (at least) yearly tradition. If you ever have the opportunity to visit there, it's truly worth it.
I could spend plenty of time philosophizing about the time we spent at the monastery, but I think I'll pass on that for tonight, and let a few photographs speak for themselves. I'll share more as I work my way through all of them (for the record, there are 873 photos staring me down in Lightroom right now, so we've got a ways to go!).
+Peace, and all good, my friends.
A photo from the outdoor Stations of the Cross:
Inside the church:
And finally (for now), looking toward the church, outside:
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