Ten months on Iona
I didn’t want to come to Iona, Ten months on the island go quickly,
it was far too far away; I always knew that they would;
The interview period upset me But I’ve made the most of my time here,
and I hadn’t wanted to stay. and I won’t be going for good.
I’d told God I would go, however, I’ll remember the people for ever,
if that’s where I was meant to be; my job, perhaps for a while;
I waited a week for a letter – The Abbey and island are part of me,
then learned that they did want me. and I’ll think of ‘Shuna’, and smile.
But, right from the start, I loved it, Thank you to all who have helped me,
with the light on the Sound and Ben More; to all who have kept me on track;
My Shuna view’s the best of the rezzies Iona is a place that is special,
with the sound of the sea on the shore. I love it and will keep coming back.
Glimpsing Community: Report on a year from an Iona Community Staff Representative
January
New residents came:
bringing new energy and enthusiasm and little knowledge of past hurts.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
February
Training commenced:
with the tension of bonding for all, but instruction for some; with a mix of work and fun.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
March
Volunteers disembarked:
an explosion of life and talent and investment.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
April
Experiencing Easter came and went:
with Kathy and John and Alison and ever developing Iona tradition.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
May
More new residents:
in at the deep end, some overwhelmed, the rest of us celebrating a full staff complement.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
June
The season well under-way:
weeks ebbing and flowing within the complex web of satisfaction and frustration,
journey and intensity, delight and pain, that is the resident Iona experience.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
July
Children and teenagers:
energy… and lethargy, the community seeking and struggling to engage,
to provide appropriate activities and worship.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
August
Community Members impacted:
Community Week, Wild Geese, Out & About; creating more work,
more vitality, more energy.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
September
Variety:
themes of Argyll and pilgrimage and prayer and cyberspace and tartan & turban;
colourful and stimulating for staff and for guests.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
October
The intrusion of Autumn:
hours changing, guests leaving at 7am, staff resisting winding down
but succumbing to tiredness.
New and old encountering each other,
forging ways forward,
building community.
November
The Season has ended:
volunteers and guests gone leaving residents to feel loss, to look back, to draw breath;
residents leaving, interviews for prospective ones, change rolling ever onward.
New and old always encountering each other,
We continue to forge ways forward,
We glimpse community.
Jacqui Horton 2006