O, the times they are a-changing

Big changes for San Lorenzo Monastery were announced last week. The student-friars and their directors are being moved here from other cloisters. That will add another five, eventually six, brothers to our household. In addition to that, some under-utilized space will be renovated into a provincial archive, and the archivist will be moving here. So within a month, the number of brothers here will double. In fact, one of the brothers presently living here had to move to a nearby cloister to make room for the newbies.

I have mixed feelings about the change. On the one hand, it is nice to have a larger household since the work is spread among more people. I, for one, am looking forward to giving up some quality time with the lawn mower. I will no longer be the youngest person in the house; there will be four younger than I. Not that I would ever abuse my seniority. Oh, no. Never.

Another advantage is that young friars bring a certain amount of enthusiasm to the house, which gives the older brothers something to do, namely, try to shoot down their youthful ideals with our guns of cynicism and jadedness.

On the negative side, they bring a certain amount of enthusiasm to the house, which they expect us to share. This may translate into getting up earlier in the morning or, as I like to call it, the middle of the night. It may also mean longer periods spent in chapel. I have nothing against giving time to the Lord, but I also have work to do. And blogging. And surfing the Net. Etc.

The young men joining us today are usually more conservative than I ever was, and I am sure we will be admonished not to do or say anything that will scandalize them. So much for my scrofulous jokes, which pretty much covers all of them. I will no longer be able to say that one of my colleagues in Rome knew so many languages that we called him the "cunning linguist of the Order." Yeah, I know, who wouldn't want to hear that.

A few of the older brothers are more worried about this change than I am, and since they do not like the newly-appointed Superior of the house that much, I know they will come to me with their complaints. This will put me in the awkward position of having to mediate between the Superior and the senior friars. As a middle child, I guess I should be used to that, but I never find it easy.

So if you notice my entries becoming less cheerful, you will know the reason. On the bright side, there may be some brilliant blogging possibilities ahead.