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<font size="-1"><strong>TIM</strong></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="debbie.html">DEBBIE</a></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="joanne.html">JOANNE</a></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="lj.html">L.J.</a></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="matt.html">MATT</a></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="rory.html">RORY</a><font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="kelly.html">KELLY</a><font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="brad.html">BRAD</a></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="josh.html">JOSH</a></font> •
<font size="-2"><a href="mary.html">MARY</a></font>
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<img src="img/fvm-logo-75x75.gif" align="left"><font size="-1">W</font><font size="-2">E WERE ON RETREAT</font><font size="-1"> at a
Franciscan retreat center in western New York. It is a very secluded spot on the side of a mountain, where the only thing to
keep one awake at night is the heavy wind cutting through the trees.</font>
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<font size="-1">There, the Friars had built a labyrinth of great proportion. It takes the shape of a circle. The basic idea
of the structure was that you enter into it at a designated spot and you begin to walk. Eventually, if all goes according to plan, you
end up in the center as an accomplished individual. There's only one catch. By no means is it a journey in which
you start on the outside and walk in circles to get to the middle. Rather, it is a complex movement of twists and turns that
leave you pacing away from the center just at the moment that it might be closest to you.</font>
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<font size="-1"><img src="pic/labyrinth-190x137s.jpg" align="right">Before I began walking the labyrinth for the first time, I stood outside of it and convinced myself of which way the path would
run. As I took my first step into the labyrinth, I was rather calm and satisfied with myself because I felt that I knew the
direction of the walk. Before I knew it, an unexpected turn left me confused and heading in what I thought to
be a wrong direction. I yelled to my housemate, who was in front of me, "I didn't think that it was going to be like
this." She turned, smiled, and said, "Reflect on that statement for a while."</font>
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<font size="-1">There I was. Just a few moments prior I had my map all made out. I was convinced of the direction
in which I would walk the labyrinth, that there would be an end, and that from there I would move on to something else. Turns
out I was wrong. I began to question how often movements such as this had occurred in my life. How many times
had I mapped out my future, only to become surprised by some strange twist that seemed so inappropriate at the time, but so
right in hindsight?</font>
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<font size="-1">I guess what I took from that short walk was that no matter how greatly we may plan or anticipate our future, we must
always be prepared for surprise turns along the way. Although they may not appear to be the choices that we would make,
they are ever so appropriate. And however complex it may appear, however bumpy the road may get, we find ourselves
together at the end, ready to begin again.</font>
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<font size="-1"><em>• Tim, Philadelphia '03−'04, '04−'05</em></font>
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<center><font size="-2"><em>If you're a former FVM and would like to contribute a story for the website, please
e-mail <a href="mailto:[email protected]" target="_blank">Lizzy</a>!</em></font></center>
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P.O. Box 29276 • Philadelphia, PA 19125
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<a href="mailto:[email protected]" target="_blank"><font color="#EBD291" size="-1">[email protected]</font></a>
<a href="mailto:[email protected]" target="_blank"><font color="#EBD291" size="-1">[email protected]</font></a>
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