Happy Holidays

Greetings to one and all, this time from Mtayleb, just outside Beirut on a hillside overlooking the city where the friars of the Vice-province of the Middle East have gathered for a chapter without elections. So it is a very relaxed, hard-working meeting. There are friars here from Syria who have reported on happenings there. In the Lebanon itself there is no official side-taking; the one wish is for peace.The speed at which Beirut is rebuilt after every one of the wars is amazing. It gives confidence to the many tourists who are beginning to return to fill the thousands of bed spaces, and who are an essential element of the Lebanese economy.
Travels since Easter took me to many corners of the world, but most of the time was spent in Europe at various chapters and meetings.  Holland had a chapter in two parts and have fixed the date for part II on the third Friday in September. In the meantime, they have got the dispensation to have only two definitors.
There was torrid heat in Rome for the first two weeks of July, which coincided with the meeting of the Constitutions commission. Maybe that helped to speed up the work as the third week was free. Unfortunately many of the friars with long-haul air tickets had to hand around, as changing the ticket would have cost too much. But they had time for personal work and even a little tourism!