From Fontanilles...

Letter written to Olivier, Danièle and the whole community of la Roche d'Or, to Roger, Françoise and the small community of Russey,

I am happy to be writing to you at the heart of this unexpected experience... Since my return from the Roche d'Or last week, there have been many things to follow, reconsider and put in order everywhere. But day after day we are going deeper into the reality of today's situation. While our situation in the Fontanilles is optimal today, listening to the news and speaking to many of our contacts by email or phone, gives us an overall awareness of everything that’s happening and it is essential: dramatic situations, numerous questions, calls, insights, cries of hope, testimonies ... everything nourishes our inner work that must not stop.

Yesterday evening, while going back to Mas Quinta and before entering the house, a strange feeling came to me, a little chill, which went through my whole body ... soon growing into a layer of anguish which then quickly disappeared. I was gripped by the weight of an unusual silence. Not that this place is noisy ordinarily, quite the opposite, but the sweet background humming noises always rise from the valley.

And there, nothing! Not a car, no wind, not even the cry of an animal! Just a heavy enveloping silence ... in the night. Nothing moves, everyone is confined home for this unusual war...

Once the superficial sensation passed, I let myself be tamed and my heart took me further.

This silence was inviting me, calling me. I had to let it in, to enter deeper, to simply stand there, gradually letting faces and presences come to me via inner paths. The night became less heavy.

Little by little, this silence opened me up to the consciousness of the valley more so than its usual noise. The absence of noise made me all the more present to those who, confined to their homes, are waiting in expectation, anxiety or even anguish, or sometimes unconsciously...

I felt drawn deeper. This is where the other finds his space in me. That is where we have to hold together; "to be with," hold the relationship, constantly.

For many the situation is chaotic, terribly heavy, and leaves us destitute, except for the certainty that each one of us is held by someone who will never abandon us.

Here, around me, I sometimes feel tension, which can be hidden beneath a certain agitation, restlessness or preoccupied silence, but above all a force of goodness that works and prevails. My energy gathers to take care of it so that it can take all its space, because I know where it comes from!

Jacky and Joelle’s presence are really good, we move forward together. We meet for special times around the Word, the various listening times, lunch and work, taking care of the house and the park. I have much gratitude for all this.

What will tomorrow be? No one knows. The apparent tranquility of our area is certainly not there for long, the virus is knocking on the door ... We have to hold the siege for many more days.

In writing this I can see the long path this strange and terrible war can take us on ... Our roots will search for a deeper living water and the foliage will be affected for sure. But that spring isn't there yet... it gives us a sense of its foreboding.

How can I communicate to you that you are intimately present at the heart of all this?! For me, it is like a living stream of water that is stimulating me all around... Each piece of news we receive brings us together and nourishes us. We pray with you.

With love and all my tenderness…

Isabelle with everyone in Fontanilles.

French to English translation by Debbie Garrick and Cécile Simon