The title, Atchison
Blue, comes from a unique color of grey-blue that exists in the stained
glass windows of Mount St. Scholastica Monastery in Atchison, Kansas. It began
as a blended blue, but was changed over time by the “harsh sunlight and fierce
winds of the Kansas prairie.” Judith Valente, a T.V. broadcaster, speaker, and
writer, first came to the monastery, a home for Benedictine sisters, to lead a
retreat on slowing down and finding balance. Yet, the whole time her own soul
was starving for nourishment. The irony wasn’t lost on her.
Valente began to spend one week a month at the Mount, a six
hour ride from her home in central Illinois. Atchison Blue tells of her experiences there over the course of
three years: the sisters she met, the lessons she learned, and the slow growing
of her own soul as she continued to struggle with life. One of the main themes
of this book is that of conversatio,
having a constant conversation with life. Through both their words and their
example, the sisters teach Valente how to slow down and appreciate the present
moment, better negotiate her personal relationships, and help her come to terms
with the reality of death.
Atchison Blue
offers a beautiful look at the women of faith who reside at this particular
monastery in Kansas and the lessons that they can teach all of us who live and
work in a busy world.
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