Greetings to all. Everyone was excited this morning because this was going to be a blessed day for all of us as Orthodox Christians. We all walked to the docks to be picked up on the boats to take us to Monks Lagoon and Spruce Island. My boat was very slow and I got to sit inside the cabin, so I got to avoid the somewhat cold weather. Upon arrival at the island, there was this "Mystical fog" all over, so the boats had to be very careful pulling in. We all gathered on the beach and awaited Metropolitan Jonah to arrive. We followed the path up to the church while hearing the Alaskan people, mostly from nearby villages singing. Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was very inspirational and memorable. You know, not only was it the first trip to Alaska and Spruce Island for St. Mark group, besides Fr. Gregory and his son Alex, but for the Metropolitan as well. To celebrate liturgy on the island where St. Herman did his ministry was heartfelt for all of us and Metropolitan Jonah reminded us that this place was "the center" of Orthodoxy in America for many, many people. The singing was magnificent! The young boys from the academy and the girls voices were just angelic. You could truly feel St. Herman's presence and what it means to be an Orthodox Christian. On my walk down the path to get back to the beach for the meal, I looked down and noticed a girl's cross on the ground. Sure enough it was Salomeh's because she showed it to me the other day after she baught it. Wow. The ladies and men from Holy Resurrection and other places on Kodiak did an outstanding job with the food spread on Spruce Island. I am amazed at all their effort to get everything over there by boat. Everyone enjoyed the time spent on Spruce. The fog lifted and the sun covered the island. The pilgrims were young to old, Clergy to Hierarchy, nuns to monks, villagers and visitors from all over. Remarkable that the waters have remained calm enough for the pilgrimage each year. Upon returning to Kodiak I saw some sea lions by the boating docks. Vespers was at 6:00. Tonight for dinner Deacon Mark decided pizza, so Daniela and Michael were so nice they got it for us. The man who delivered the pizza was Greek and said he would see us at church tomorrow. I have noticed that quite a bit around here on Kodiak. The pizza man is Orthodox, the skipper for the boat ride today to Spruce was Deacon Anthony Mayo with his two sons, Nicholas and Andrew are Orthodox, the Priests and seminarians get into the town movie theatre for free, the owners of the furniture store in town are Orthodox and the "Monk's" bookstore and cafe in town had all Orthodox things. You get my point! Tomorrow is our last full day here on Kodiak Island. Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, followed by a grand banquet, followed by a "block party in the yard by the church are all scheduled for the day. There will be Russian and Bulgarian music and dances, etc. Oh yeah, one last thing. St. Mark teen group made the local paper "Kodiak Daily Mirror" on Thursday or Friday. We are trying very hard to get a copy. Goodnight.
Christina
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment