God in the Gazebo

Everyone knows that to get college students to an event, one must serve food. And not just any food. Free food. So, when I decided that I wanted to launch a new type of event at the Mount called "God in the Gazebo," my friend and fellow campus minister, Gaile, suggested that I start with something a little more accessible, and that I definitely serve food. So, we advertized "Snacks in the Gazebo," a chance for students to come out of their dorms and enter a structure that had previously been closed to them: a tall, stone gazebo, looking something like Rapunzel's tower. Straight out of a storybook (like most of the buildings here at MSMC's Doheny campus). The flyer was a night shot of the gazebo lit up from the inside and from on top the tower, beckoning like a lighthouse into the night. "Spooky" is how one student described the building, which sits closed, locked and tucked away into a corner of the property just beyond where anyone would typically travel. Getting girls out there would require something tantalizing, and getting them to come back, something creative.

I went around with cookies at 7:30, hoping to entice them with my invitation to come out at 9 for said snacks. But when I had made it through half of a floor and my cookie plate was nearly empty (& after I realized I wouldn't have enough snacks for all the girls who said they were coming), I decided to abort that operation and just head for set up. The crew met me in my room (Flor, Jas & Tina) and we took to transforming the creepy, abandoned tower into a space fit for guests. The spread was bountiful, the candles plenty, and the incense sweet. Soft ambient music played from Flor's iPod (an eclectic blend of Japanese, Celtic and other peace-inducing melodies) and "Snacks in the Gazebo" began. As girls arrived, they gathered in around the food table, munching and talking. I could almost hear the sigh of relief as some of them shared that this was their study break, and now the smoke and soft light could whisk them away to another place, even if for a moment.

I enjoyed my talks with many of the young ladies, as I listened to them share about their adjustment to college life, courses of study and stresses. I even found some Valley girls here - some ladies who grew up in and attended school in my hometown of Canoga Park. Some faces and names were new, and others I encountered again for second and third times. My struggle is remembering their names. I hope to get better at that.

Tonight, I felt a presence in that Gazebo. Particularly, I felt the presence of the spirit of one person supporting me - one whose ministry greatly influenced me in direct and indirect ways throughout and beyond my own college experience: Sr. Peg Dolan. She had such a beautiful way of communicating God's presence to groups and individuals just by being herself, listening well and sharing carefully-chosen words of wisdom and encouragement. Thankfully, with the help of her spirit and the Holy Spirit, a lot of candllight, and some food, people came together just a little more closely tonight. We seemed to float on grace. I'm grateful (and only a little surprised) that, despite the culinary focus, we did encounter God in the Gazebo tonight, after all.