Assisi

Friday was an amazing day for me in the town of Assisi where St. Francis of Assisi lived about 800 years ago and is buried. What I notice most about this day is that it felt just right.

The day started with me meeting the Spello Taxi driver — “G” — in the main piazza, so he could take me to the train station for a 8:59 departure to Assisi.

G and I met by chance earlier in the week when I saw him pulling into the train station. I waived at him, and he stopped. What a blessing it was meeting G. To make a long story short, it’s hot here and in the 90s. At mid day a 15–to-20-minute walk back to where I am staying in the hill town of Spello is enough to make you not want to go out.

Getting a ride to and from the train station changes the whole experience of travel for me here. I can reduce the schlepping to/from the train station. What’s great is that I can walk it, but I don’t have to. The taxi ride is a respite. Once I get to where I am going by train, it’s all walking to discover new things. It is still hot, but the joy of discovery is soothing.

My guide Simona in Assisi really set the tone for what was a beautiful day. She is about my age. She travels 50 miles to Assisi for work as a guide. While she could live closer to areas of work, she prefers living in a small and quiet town in Umbria that is just right for her, supplying her with what she needs to feel comfortable. I feel a kinship here. I also travel a ways to work each day. The town where I live and have had a home for more than 30 years is comfortable and familiar. While I travel a distance to work, the road takes me to an amazing school community that being a part of feels just right. Getting to know and gaining an understanding of what feels just right at this time in life is becoming more familiar to me. This way of being softens my heart because it feels like a long time coming. While some things over the years have maintained their importance, other things have changed or seem to have a less enduring energy. Being present and noticing what that feels like for me helps me. I am grateful.

History unless verified is just a story. It was helpful to see in Assisi and hear from Simona how the Christian or Catholic faith has evolved over time with people like St. Francis and St. Claire helping to pave the way for spiritual unity. Seeing the Poor Claires (Sisters of St. Claire) and Franciscan Fryers living their faith is a testament to their faith. Walking the main street where pilgrims have come before me for hundreds of years to follow and honor St. Francis feels different than some past roads I have traveled. Perhaps it is because I was raised Catholic and sang the prayer of St. Francis when I was little. The song begins with “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.”

The song always felt gentle to me. It was a gentle request that I be of service each day. Recently I heard someone on social media say, “Service is love made visible.” I was curious of its origin, so I Googled it.

Writer and poet Kahlil Gibran said, “Work is love made visible.” The idea is that whatever we do we should do with love. With love, for example, the bread we bake is delicious. Without love, it is bitter. I wonder how much of our work each day is done with love.

Recently when I was helping prepare flower petals for one of the flower carpets for the Infiorata di Spello, a little girl at the table looked at me and said, “I love you.” She drew a heart with her hands as she said it. I had just been introduced to Serena, who will be in first grade. She knows some English. What’s interesting is that I tell my first grade students that I love them and even when their behavior is not so good. What a gift to be told by a little girl I barely know that I am loved. I wonder why she said it. Was the work we were doing in service of our community love? I certainly feel this way.