for the newsletter

Dear St. Paul's family,

Oh how I miss Bellingham summers! Before we moved to Austin, a fellow exiled Washingtonian warned us that summer here is a bit like winter everywhere else - you mostly just stay inside and endure it! The big difference, though, is that we can at least go jump in the swimming pool now and again! Three of the four of us celebrated our birthdays in July: food and swimming were the two main avenues of celebration. When we venture out into the heat, we enjoy early morning walks, outdoor concerts and visiting new places around the Austin area.

I am nearing the end of a three-month chaplaincy internship (also known as Clinical Pastoral Education, one of the valuable requirements for Ordination to the Priesthood) working in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Seton Medical Center in Austin. During my work week, I spend three mornings in a classroom at the hospital learning about subjects varying from family systems to grief, processing the experiences of working with patients, and receiving feedback from supervisors and peers about how to provide greater pastoral care. The rest of my week as well as one night on-call each week, is spent with hospital patients and personnel. At any given time there have been as many as thirty-five patients recovering from strokes, heart attacks, drug overdoses, or major surgeries in the ICU. Many of them have undergone a time of dramatic transition - for some a second chance or a wake-up call, for others the loss of health, mobility, various functions, or even their lives - while under my care as a chaplain intern. My job has been to provide prayer and a listening ear to help them and their families to observe, process, and endure such life changes. Some days have been an amazing confirmation of my vocation, while others leave me with the weight of the world on my shoulders

I have two more years here before I once again will pack up my family and prepare for an exciting and unpredictable future in which we hope to return to the Diocese of Olympia to continue our ministry. While I can still readily access my old life and I truly miss some parts of it, I feel daily more committed and more present to the life that is becoming. Through it all, I keep holding to the fact that I would not be here, could not be here, without the support and calling of the joyous fellowship of journeying souls we call the Church. Thank you all for your prayers, concern, and affirmation through this journey - my life wouldn't be the same without all of you!

In a little over a month, my family and I will be flying up to Washington to visit all of you. We're all very excited to see all of our favorite places and our friends at St. Paul's. I'll be preaching at all three services on August 28th, and after each service I'll be in the Great Hall with some pictures and stories to share. After the last coffee hour is over, I invite you all to share a potluck lunch with us at the church. I would love the chance to spend more time with anyone who wants to hear more stories or ask questions about what my experience has been like so far. Please plan to bring a simple dish and enjoy a fun time with my family and me.

Peace,
Michael Carroccino