Friday, October 21, 2011

Priest Hermit: My rebellious flesh says that when it’s freezing it is actually freezing! Holy Souls Hermitage stove project

From Father George David Byers:


The picture above is a blizzard in Lourdes when I was a chaplain there a few years back.

People’s idea of being a hermit involves being out in the desert. The usual paintings of hermits involve being half-dressed, baking to death in the hot sun. Mind you, upper Egypt would be horrifically hot… during the day.

But there are some things that you can only learn with experience. In the desert, it’s not so much the daytime that’s a penance, it’s the nighttime freezing temperatures. There are wild ranges of temperatures from hellishly hot to the cold that one would behold when hell freezes over.

Hermits who live in rain forest mountains[!] can know a wild range of temperatures, though perhaps not so intensely severe. Yet, the other day, it went — in the fahrenheit scale — from the mid 80s during the day down to the 30s at night. 50 degrees in about six hours. Yikes! Great football weather. Great lumberjack weather. But hard to live in outdoor temps 24/7. Which is the reason for a cave, or, lacking a cave, a hermitage, with a stove, with stove pipe!

The cost is $1,506.98. I can’t solicite donations under Obama’s administration. So I won’t. I’m just informing you of my personal project!

This morning it was near freezing again. Tomorrow it might just freeze altogether. And then… Winter!

Daniel 3,66-72 NAB —

Fire and heat, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Cold and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Dew and rain, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Frost and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Ice and snow, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Nights and days, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Light and darkness, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

If anyone were to force me to take a donation against all my protestations, such a kind soul would have to send a check made out to George David Byers, and send it to: 102 College Station Drive; Suite 3 — PMB 233; Brevard N.C. 28712 USA !