Wow! What an incredible past two days! We began Thursday afternoon by singing for Fr. John Jenkins, President of Notre Dame, and the Notre Dame Leadership Council in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. After singing, Fr. John offered the choir a blessing for safe travels on our trip to Saint Meinrad Archabbey.
After climbing back aboard the bus, we were starving and wolfed down subway sandwich dinners and began the journey to our hotel in Tell City, IN. A series of Pixar movies ensued, which began with Big Hero 6 and concluded with Monsters Inc. We took a quick restroom stop at a Wal-Mart in Carmel, IN where singers loaded up on snacks for the remainder of the trip. As the hours passed, we drifted off to sleep with Julie Andrews singing to us in Mary Poppins. Because it was a late arrival to our hotel, we held our evening prayer on the bus and went right to our rooms for bed.Breakfast came early, 7:30-8:30am, where we loaded up on waffles, eggs, sausages, bagels, and more. The sausages were particularly spicy! We boarded the bus for a day of singing and exploration.
Saint Meinrad Archabbey sits on a hill surrounded by pasture and farmland with the steeples and bell towers visible from miles away. As we approached the century-old abbey, singers remarked that it looked like a castle from a storybook. The Archabbey has a lively reverberation, is spacious, and full of sunlight pouring in through beautiful stained-glass windows. At the rear of the church is a rose window and at its center is a dove that symbolizes the Holy Spirit, which is also the logo for the NDCC!
We recorded three hymns in morning and four in the afternoon. Although still a little sleepy from our late night, the choir sang beautifully. (Visit our Facebook page to hear a clip from today’s recording).
After the recording, Brother Jean took us on a tour of the Abbey. He gave us a history of the Abbey (built in 1902), an idea of what it is like to live there as a monk, and the spiritual journey of the brothers. We concluded the tour by participating in Vespers with the monks, who sang Gregorian chant and allowed us to join in. The monks pray together five times a day using chant in what is both a communal and personal worship.
After a dinner of all-you-can eat pasta, salad, pumpkin break, garlic bread, and more, we set out to explore the lakes and fields of Saint Meinrad. The choir filled the fields with bubbles, tossed the football, threw Frisbees, and created chalk drawings. After a short bus ride, everyone took a dip in the hotel pool and is now preparing for evening prayer and a good night’s rest.
We send love and warm hugs to our family and friends in South Bend! We are having a great time and look forward to a full day of singing and more exploring!