Daily Diary

To avoid two trips into town, both Vladika and I first went to my chiropractor for my monthly spinal decompression after which  Vladika had his therapy session, not of course, at the chiropractic clinic.  It had been raining fairly heavily all day and we got quite wet merely going from the vehicle to the buildings.  […]

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We had a bit of a struggle with the Slavonic Matins because some of the readers were absent and, when the Liturgy began there was scarcely a soul around.  How saddening it was, I thought, but then the main door kept opening with more and more people entering to fill the church. Saint John of […]

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It must have been at least three o’clock in the morning before I could fall asleep and there was nothing to explain this unusual situation.  Today, however, I was told that many people have difficulty falling asleep when there is a full moon. Whether or not that is true, I shall sleep soundly tonight, as […]

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VLADIKA VARLAAM’S DAILY DIARY With the new heading, it will be obvious to everyone that these entries are written by me, not by someone else, as it has been confusing for many people, wondering who exactly has written them, especially when noted that they are posted by Vladika Lazar.  Now that you are aware of […]

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Although I stepped outdoors only once today, it has been busy with many people coming and going.  Andy took Vladika Lazar to Abbotsford where he bought a new video camera and, since today was the beginning of Black Friday, he got an excellent discount.  Andy later dropped in a couple of times to do various […]

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As I mentioned yesterday, rain began this morning, but at least it has showered more than steady or heavy rain and, as someone said,”It is November, after all.” The daily temperatures for this week are from seven to eleven degrees Celsius, while many parts of Canada are under snow with temperatures of thirty degrees below […]

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  Father Moses accompanied me for my appointment with the specialist where we waited for at least forty five minutes before being called into his office. This is quite normal for him, as he is overloaded with patients, but an excellent specialist.  He acknowledged that I am still alive and should be for some time, […]

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 Many, many thanks to all of you who phoned to congratulate me on my nameday today.  I was touched by your sincere good wishes.  Our monastery has tried for decades to wean people off the practice of celebrating their birthdays and instead concentrating on their namedays, but I feel that it is a lost cause.  […]

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A few people thought that we would have had a fire in the wood burning stove in the hall, as it was chilly early this morning, but I have not allowed it yet, because it would have been unbearably hot by the time we came for the Agapi dinner. Perhaps we shall start using the […]

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Where has this week gone? It seems that it just began and already we are entering into a new week. Some men arrived early in the morning to continue reorganizing the workshop, which will no longer be a storage area but a place where one can actually work. Some women came to clean the church, […]

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 It has been another ideal day, sunny and warm with a slightly golden tinge to the mountains, while farm fields were in brilliant green with next year’s crop already coming up.  Father Moses took his mobile phone to photograph this wonderful scenery, and near sunset, he captured the snow clad mountain tops displaying their pale […]

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 I had neglected to mention that we had two carloads of people from the Department of Fisheries  who came to inspect the  work they have done over the past few years.  They installed a new and large culvert, replacing our smaller one, planted dozens of trees  and supervised the dredging of the creek to enable […]

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  It has been quite a while since the last filming of the series “All Things Considered” took place.  In fact, the very last one might have been before Vladika Lazar had his strokes in October of last year.  Reader Irenee and Ward Draper joined Vladika in the new church where the filming took place. […]

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Father Moses accompanied me to the Cancer Clinic Pharmacy at the Abbotsford Hospital where I had to pick up medication to take with me on my next visit to the specialist. There was almost no parking available there, but we did find a spot far from both entrances, so we walked at least as far […]

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The weather forecast promises us rain for tomorrow, so let it rain, at least today we had plenty of sunshine.  Today’s first visitor brought us incense from his recent visit to Mount Athos.  I have never seen incense that looked like rye bread cut into tiny squares and it will be interesting to find out […]

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This Sunday was cool but with a lot of sunshine which made a great difference and sustained our spirits.  At the end of Matins, our Georgian friend Andrei, was tonsured reader by Bishop Saba, then immediately thereafter he was ordained a subdeacon by Vladika Lazar.  Andrei was  overwhelmed by this double event and we were […]

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Bishop Saba and Father Shio were brought back to the monastery about four o’clock in the morning from the Vancouver Airport where a number of Georgians went to greet the bishop.  They both managed to get about two or three hours of sleep before beginning today.  We had a nice casual lunch and conversation about […]

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  Vladika Lazar, Father Moses and I drove to Chilliwack to serve the funeral for a dear friend, Miodrag Petrovic, who died recently.  For over thirty years he has been a supporter of this monastery and, in fact, he was a “kum” that is, something like a spiritual witness and supporter, a custom close to […]

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  Today was the kind of autumnal day we like to have—sunny, yet slightly chilly, although it usually gets warmer when it begins to rain. It did not take long to assemble the necessary books and material to take for Miodrag’s funeral tomorrow.  It should be interesting to watch the three of us, crippled and […]

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After Vladika’s therapy session, we bumped into Wade, who has worked with the homeless in Abbotsford for many years. A few years ago we often took food to feed the homeless in an Abbotsford park, where Wade and his helpers looked after them and some of our own people helped as well.  He has promised […]

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We received a large supply of pure beeswax candles, half of which are 10″x 3/4″ while the rest are 12″x3/4″.  Since I gave up making candles a few years ago, we have not had candles of this size, although there is a demand for them.  Occasionally, perhaps, we might use some of them here, otherwise […]

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  We had to hurry this morning, as Vladika had a doctor’s appointment which proved to be satisfactory.  Tests he had earlier indicate that he has only an eight percent chance of having another stroke which is good news and he also was told that he can use any exercises he desires, meaning that I […]

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  I remembered to change my clock and wrist watch before going to bed last night, but when I awoke shortly past midnight, I could not understand what had happened, or what had not happened, so I changed the time once again.  When I awoke at three  o’clock [I wake up several times each night], […]

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  This has been a day of particular significance for us, showing the two important aspects of Orthodox Christian life.  First, we baptized Evgeniy, a Turkish man who has been yearning for so long to become an Orthodox Christian and thus, a new life in Orthodoxy.  Then, after Vespers, we served a full memorial, as […]

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  Last night Andrei [not to be confused with Andy] saw a bear on the monastery road as he was leaving and this morning I glanced out my bedroom window and saw that bear sitting in the tall grass just a few feet away.  There is nothing left for him to eat except the figs […]

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 Today has been overcast with periods of rain, yet it was really quite warm, but by evening a strong wind arose and the lights flickered a couple of times which sent me looking for my flashlight in case power is lost.  Nothing has happened yet, so I shall continue with this diary entry.  I was […]

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  On this, the last day of October, people are celebrating Halloween, an event that has become so popular that it has even spread into Eastern and Southern Europe. Not that many know its meaning and significance.  It comes from the Roman Catholic Holy Day of all Souls when the dead are remembered and prayed […]

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I had to leave a sample of my blood to be analyzed for the meeting with my specialist next month, so I chose to go to our local hospital instead of the usual lab. From past experience, I knew that the wait would be long, so I bought a newspaper to read while waiting my […]

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Since this is the last Monday of the month, I drove to Abbotsford for my regular session of spinal decompression.  As soon as it ended, my curiosity was enough that I drove to the nearby newly opened store No Frills, built where our favourite nursery had existed for many years and where we had bought […]

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When I walked into the church, Matins had already begun and I saw little Xenia and her younger sister Daria sitting at the back.  Since their parents were not present I could not understand how they could have come, learning later that they had a “sleep over” at the home of their uncle and aunt […]

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  We baptized a beautiful golden blond three year old girl named Martha who behaved maturely and took interest in the procedure. Later, I baked a prosphora and when I took it out of the oven I was sad to see that it resembled a football, for it somehow came out a little elongated, but […]

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  Davey brought a flat of twenty eight bags of salt to be used to melt ice and snow in winter, each bag weighing twenty kilograms.  In addition to the several bags left over from last winter, we should be well prepared for this coming winter.  Andy moved several truck loads of brush and small […]

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  When the home care lady arrived in the morning, she was excited, having seen a bear running across our field.  She was able to film the bear so that she could show it to her family.  Some men came to finish with the water problem we had by filling the area that had been […]

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What was supposed to be a rainy day turned out to be sunny and warm and, in fact, I had to water some potted flowers outside, as the soil had dried out. For the past few days there has been filming in our little village of Dewdney. Since we get most of the local news […]

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There have been many positive comments about the photos that appear with each dairy entry.  Basically, I am not responsible for their selection and inclusion, but their appearance does seem to make a difference in the positive sense.  This afternoon, a tall but young birch sapling was planted in memory of Alexander, with dark clouds […]

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After months of difficulty with the water system in the konak, we think that the problem has been resolved.  Father Moses has been able to get water, no longer having to come to the main building with a bucket, or using a garden hose.  Many, many thanks to all who so diligently strove to overcome […]

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I wonder if I might have dissuaded some people from coming to church this morning after frightening them about the wild animals around us for, indeed, there were fewer people present than usual.  Still, I must praise the singers at the kliros, for their singing was the best in a long time. Father Alexey phoned […]

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October can be an interesting month because mornings are often misty which creates a magical scene that is gradually transformed by the rising sun. I particularly like the tiny dewdrops that form on intricate cobwebs, giving them the appearance of ancient Indian jewels.  After yesterday’s episode with the wild animals, we were cautious today, but […]

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  There are days when not much can be written in this diary, although an earnest attempt is always made to include items of interest.  Today, on the other hand, has shown us that living here, in a partially isolated monastery, much can take place.  Andy came early in the morning to warn us about […]

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After taking Vladika Lazar to the clinic for some tests, we drove up the Fraser Valley, but not so far as where it becomes narrower and finally ends.  We stopped to photograph blueberry fields that stretched as far as the eye can see with some fields having reddish orange leaves, others bright red, and still […]

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This warm and sunny Indian Summer weather causes us to rejoice and to enjoy it before autumn really steps in.  I wanted to take Vladika Lazar for a long ride [of course I was also thinking of myself] so we drove to Harrison Hot Springs, a prominent resort only about thirty five minutes away from […]

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Andy drove Vladika Lazar to Abbotsford to buy a snow fence in preparation for this winter’s snow storms.  There are about three troublesome spots on our monastery road where snow builds up into drifts that are impossible to pass.  This year we had some of the tall grass cut on the opposite side of the […]

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The weather remains beautiful and our spirits abound with renewed energy and enthusiasm.  There is one thing, however, that I must ask of those readers who attend church here: please be careful with the bread and any other food that you intend to throw out, using the excuse of “feeding the birds.” Andy was witness […]

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Today’s celebration of the feast of the Protection of the Theotokos was unusual, in that Vladika Lazar spoke briefly at various parts of the liturgy to explain what was happening in simple theological terms. This made the service longer than usual, and we had prayers for travel and a memorial litany as well. I was […]

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We baptized a little baby boy this morning, then in the afternoon, Father Alexey baptized a little baby girl. It is often the case that food is brought after a baptism and today was no exception. After Vespers, we had supper prepared for us by Galina and Anna, while Vladika Lazar was brought an Ethiopian […]

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Once a week, usually on a Friday, Health Care sends a woman to help in cleaning our cottage, that is, she will vacuum the carpets, scrub the kitchen and bathroom floors, and do other necessary cleaning work. This time a substitute came and arrived quite late, just as we had to drive to town to […]

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The monastery often has what could be called mysterious visitors, such as those who were here this morning. Glyko came to see us briefly and, when she went into the kitchen, she found a couple of women busy cooking. They had prepared a large pot of borshch, a vegetable ragout, and mushrooms with sour cream. […]

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I neglected to mention in yesterday’s diary that, when we arrived back at the monastery in the late afternoon, we saw four windows leaning against the workshop and immediately we realized that a guardian angel had provided the monastery with the needed gift for the new church. Its four windows needed replacement, one of them […]

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This morning appointments were made for flu shots tomorrow for both Vladika Lazar and me. I know that some people are against such shots but I have not had the flu for at least 35 if not 40 years, ever since I began to get flu shots. After such a successful record, I do not […]

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Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada [not to be confused with the American one which is celebrated at the end of November] and we are truly thankful for all that we have been given by Jesus Christ, Who together with the Most Holy Theotokos and all the Saints, watch over us, guide and protect us, […]

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