Free Flower of Heaven by Julien Ayotte Page A

pursuing the priesthood any further. Continued pursuit by the remaining candidates was no clear indication that priesthood was imminent, but it was a beginning.
    That evening, Dick broke the news to his mother that he would visit St. Ignatius in early August just to see what it would be like.
    “I’m not surprised; I’ve seen it in your eyes since you first became an altar boy. You’ll never know if it’s what you want to do if you don’t go up there to Baltimore and find out.”

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    CHAPTER 6

    St. Ignatius Seminary was like a self-contained fortress, a reminder to Dick of the castles and mansions he had heard of and seen pictures of in his history courses in high school and at Plymouth. The huge stone structure stood three stories high and extended several hundred feet across a plush apron of lawn that extended far in front of it, bringing out its unobstructed beauty. As Dick’s taxi drove up to the entrance gates leading to this grand façade, he felt a tingling sensation overtaking his entire body. He looked at his watch, 10:00 a.m., right on time for his meeting with Father Gleason before being assigned to a room in the postulant candidates’ quarters.
    No sooner had the taxi driver placed Dick’s suitcase beside him and wished him well, there appeared a tall silver-bearded man in clerical robes with a smile that surely was exactly what Dick needed at that moment. For a brief instant, he had become uncertain as to what he was doing here and was tempted to try to flag down the fleeing taxi while he had the chance.
    “Hi, I’m Romie Gleason. Welcome to St. Ignatius. And you would be…?”
    “Dick Merrill, Father, from Rumney, New Hampshire, Boca Raton, Florida, I mean…”
    “I know what you mean, son; Father Gavin and I had a long talk about your coming and he’s told me all about you. Let’s get your gear inside and I’ll show you around.”
    The grounds were even prettier behind the building than from the entranceway. There were ball fields, walking trails with young men strolling the grounds, and a pond complete with a gazebo surrounded with benches. Inside the main building, there were two huge parlors for greeting visitors and their parents. There were very ornate tables and racks of literature depicting life as a seminarian and Father Gleason told Dick to read as many as he could during his brief stay in the coming week. The building’s main floor had wide hallways lined with statues and religious pictures leading to the double doors of the chapel. As you walked the hallways, you could hear the footsteps echo against the twelve-foot high ceilings from the marble floor below. Dick smiled. As he set foot through the doorway of the chapel, he immediately was besieged with the huge glimmer and radiance of sunshine streaming through the stain-glassed windows extending nearly thirty feet high. This chapel was three times the size of St. Barnaby’s Church and the biggest place of worship he had ever seen.
    As if some magnetic force drew him forward, Dick found himself headed toward the altar and the accompanying pulpit. When he reached his destination and turned to face the vastness that confronted him, he merely smiled. “How does it feel, Dick? Is it a bit scary, overwhelming?”
    “It’s magnificent, Father, unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, it’s beautiful.”
    “Come on, let me introduce you to your roommate; he’s been here for two years now, his name is Ed McNeil, I think you’ll like him.”
    The dormitory building was adjacent to the main building and housed all seminarians during their entire stay at St. Ignatius. The odds of keeping the same roommate for all four years, Father Gleason related to Dick, were very slim and rarely did it happen. Many postulants lasted for as much as two years, some only one year and many for less than a year. Ed McNeil already had two roommates; Dick would be the third, if only for a week. If Dick decided to enroll at the seminary following the