Moments with the Monks

I went for answers. I left with ____.

3:30 AM, the alarm went off.
Even then, I was behind.

The monks had already been up — moving through silence, grounded in prayer. One told me he wakes in the 2:00 AM hour because it’s when he feels most connected. No noise. No distractions.

Their days follow a rhythm: prayer, work, silence.
Structured. Disciplined.

I grew up Catholic — but this level of commitment felt foreign.
Still, hard not to respect.

So I leaned in. Followed the rhythm. Observed.

I wanted to understand their alignment —
how, knowing all that they knew, they actually lived it out.

Low key, I thought I might take myself straight to a nunnery if their alignment felt that compelling.
It would’ve felt like the obvious move.

But it didn’t hit like that.

One monk said he’s not there to give answers —
he’s there to hand you a box of curiosity.

That’s where this all landed — more questions, more head tilts.

So no… I didn’t leave with the keys to my room at the convent.
No answer sheet.
Not even a groundbreaking list of tweaks to make to my life.

But I did leave with what I needed.

An environment to reset in.
And the perspective of people who aren’t as pulled into our noise.

As the lessons continue to unfold,
my awareness grows — and so does the curiosity.

With that, the search continues.

For a way of living that’s sustainable to live, to teach, and to carry forward.

For now, that means:

Reconnecting in the evening for quality sleep to process the day and prepare for the next.
So each day builds on the last.

Let’s keep going…