We awoke today to a drizzling rain – quite a change from last night’s storm. The thunder and lightning kept me offline and unable to load any pictures, but it was good sleeping weather. With the rain, it is much cooler here today.
We also had an early morning Mass in Pier Giorgio’s bedroom. It was the third day we have had Mass in the house and it confirms my thinking about how good it must be to live in a convent or monastery with an in-house priest. It’s great! What a luxurious convenience to be able to merely walk down the hall for Mass. The visiting priest is leaving today, unfortunately. I did not take a picture during Mass but I think you can see the small makeshift altar just to the left of Pier Giorgio’s bed in today’s photo. Mass is said in here, the room where Pier Giorgio died, instead of his other bedroom. (You will remember that he actually died in Turin but that room was moved here.)
On a related note, a day or two ago, someone in the house was not feeling well and the doctor came around to make a housecall with his small medical bag. That would definitely not be a common sight in the USA in 2007! Although nobody enjoys being ill, what a convenience to just wait for the doctor to come see you in bed rather than wait for hours in an overcrowded germ-filled waiting room. Making housecalls is a practice that hasn’t disappeared and was the norm at the time of Pier Giorgio’s death.
Despite these types of amenities in this slower-paced lifestyle, I admit that I still prefer the conveniences of home. No matter where you travel, there’s no place like it! ///cmw