There's An App for That

I am taking an online course about mobile apps. It is true what they say about there being an app for just about anything you could want. Fortunately, this isn't about how to create an app, just an exploration of what is out there and how they work. I am floored by the pages of apps listed for us to consider, and that is just a drop in the bucket. I read with interest the reviews others in the course put on our blog. Some of the apps would be helpful for library research.

I don't have a lot of time right now to download and learn too many, but I am hoping to explore at least a dozen and then feature one a month in the campus newsletter, ones that will be of interest to faculty and students. In fact, I am finding webpages that various libraries have created which list research helpful apps. While I do admit that most of the people on this campus who own iPads are faculty, there are lots of smartphones out there in the hands of our students. It is fast becoming a brave new world. I just hope I can keep up!

A Letter From Mom

Mom has been doing so much better these days. My sister tells me that she has been outside walking and that she actually went shopping with them. They took her to a concert one of the kids was in and are holding her responsible to take care of her personal hygiene without assistance. It sounds like she is gaining some strength and making progress.

Today I actually got a hand written letter from her! I was ecstatic. True the handwriting is  a bit challenging to decipher, but I could actually read what she wrote. She wished me good health and admitted her shaking penmanship, then recounted some of her activities like going for a walk and folding her laundry. She closes with letting me know she is praying for me :) And I for her.

What a shot in the arm - it is almost as if she is the Mom I have always chatted with and turned to when I am struggling with things. Just to know she is actively praying for me is a terrific blessing. Way to go, Mom!

Retreat Day 2

How peculiar that I never made it to any of the services at the monastery. Nor did I peruse the materials in the bookstore. How unlike me! I intended to. I even argued with myself about going. But I didn't want to exhaust my energies on something as unnecessary as shopping when I am trying to focus on the things of the spirit and on relationships with others. So even though people showed me what treasures they discovered and purchased at the gift shop, and even though I really wanted to take home some of their bread and honey and maybe even some jelly or chocolates, and even though I always run across some new author or topic that is germane to my research, I resisted and stayed put, drinking in what I was supposed to be there to do and purposely not doing anything that would distract from that.

As we completed the final packing and cleaning up and I climbed in my car to head back to Rochester, I immediately thought that this would be a good time to catch a service and check out the store. And just as immediately, I realized that I wanted very much to guard the time of my drive back and meditate on what was stirring inside me. If I get distracted now I will lose that vital part of the experience. So I take myself firmly in hand, talk turkey to my inner drives and keep driving right past the abbey and back onto the expressway. Residual effects are sometimes the most productive.