113. The Night Chapel

I've been around this monastery for thirty years and I try to forget why it's called the Night Chapel.  I happened to stumble into the small space during my first month at Our Lady's and thought the room would be perfect with a stained glass window. We eventually installed one from Bulgaria. You barely notice the beautiful window from the outside in the circular driveway, because there is no illumination from within shining out through the glass. The window appears darkened and the colors are completely muted. But when seen from inside the little chapel in the daytime, the window is a gorgeous palette of rich colors surrounding St. Lucy, who according to the legend inscribed on the bottom of the window, is the patron saint of eyes.

As one sits facing the chapel's altar, light from the stained glass streams in from the side and bathes the single pew in a bouquet of pinks and golds and pale blues. Saint Lucy 's likeness was painted on the glass in a pleasant manner. By that I mean the artist did not render her druid-like with a drawn face and emaciated features. Instead the saint is portrayed as young and pretty in a bare shouldered pose with her arms thrown back behind her head. Before the Monks stopped coming to the chapel, they were often found in there in the afternoon sitting in the pew sideways, staring at St. Lucy instead of focusing their attention forward at the altar and crucifix.