Thursday, September 25, 2025
Chicago
Exploring the Chicago Botanical Gardens and Attending a Religious Concert at Hoy Name Cathedral in Chicago
Today was another fabulous day in Chicago. It is amazing how different each day is and how much we are able to pack into it. All thanks to ML who has put so much thought into planning and executing a program of activity for me that she knows I will enjoy immensely.
So, after breakfast this morning: toast with peanut butter and honey and decaff coffee, we decided to go to the Chicago Botanical Garden as ML is a member there and gets to take visitors in for free.
In the Chicago Botanical Garden:
We were blessed by a fabulous day for walking in gardens—and indeed this is exactly what it is—a series of gardens or garden rooms, each of which has a different thematic design. As soon as we entered, what caught our eye were the trailing Chrysanthemums in yellow that were trained to grow down both sides of the large overhead planters. A few steps later, we discovered that there was a Walking Tour, due to begin in just a few minutes. We decided to join it.
However, before the tour began, ML who knows the garden well, gave me her own tour by beginning at the Greenhouses that were grouped according to climate conditions: equatorial, arid, etc. I love these greenhouses as one sees magnificent varieties in these spaces. We also passed by the Bonsai section where we saw 70-80 year bonsai cypress trees. A truly amazing sight.
Taking the tour turned out to be less pleasing than we would expect. The guide told us that she is new at the game, but she basically knew nothing—all the time she had to check her notes. Her knowledge of most plants and items was zero. Still, it was good to walk through the various parts of the garden, to skirt the lake and see the fish life beneath (large carp and smaller fish), to see a blue heron on an island, to see Canada geese in the lake, to see a grand bronze sculpture of Canada geese, to gasp at a wonderful sculpture of Linneaus and to see the Model Railroad (which then made me eager to actually enter the space and see it).
Well, I guess for me, the best part of the tour was a visit to the English gardens which were divided into several rooms: The Rose Garden, The Tudor Garden, the Knot Garden, etc. Each one of these carried the characteristics of English gardens that make them distinctive including Lutyens benches and Gertrude Jekyl herbaceous borders—not to mention red brick walls that form walled gardens filled with sculpture and fountains. I could spend entire days in Gardens—honestly, if only I had more time, I would do just this.
Of course, we thoroughly enjoyed the Model Railroad. I also love miniature trains and there was such a variety of them. They were trained to pass through a vast miniature landscape that featured some of America’s best-known landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty and the White House as well as lesser-known monuments such as Mount Rushmore and Falling Water, a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed building in Pennsylvania. Of course, we took many pictures and became kids again as we watched the trains tunnel through the landscape that was also filled with exquisite plantings of every kind.
Home for Lunch and a Short Nap Before a Big Outing:
We did make our way through the gift shop where I spotted a nice set of pinecone motif oven glove and potholder. It was priced at 50% off and when I went up to pay for it, ML let me have it as her gift to me. I thought that was really lovely of her and I will treasure it and think of her every time I use it.
The, it was time for us to get back home to have lunch and, hopefully, get a bit of a nap too. It would be a selection of leftovers from ML’s stash of dishes: her delicious carrot, lentil and ginger soup and stuffed chicken breasts from last night. It made a handsome and very tasty lunch and would leave us with enough time to get some rest. She is constantly on the go as she has two dogs to cater to, to feed, to take on walks, etc. I actually managed to get a quick nap in before I woke up to shower and then get dressed for the next item on our agenda for today.
A Cocktail Party in Chicago followed by a Concert of Religious Music:
ML happens to volunteer with an organization called Ignatian Voluntary Corps (IVC). She gives them two days of her week and also supports their fund-raising. In fact, I found out that she is something of a celebrity in these circles as they gave us VIP seats in the church.
So, Claudette (ML’s sister) drove over to her place and parked in her driveway and then we were off—we headed to Sharon’s place to pick her up first and then to the home of a 91-year old lady named Elizabeth, whom they happen to know through the YWCA of which they are members. So, with five folks in the car, ML drove us to Chicago and parked her car downtown.
We were headed to the Holy Name Cathedral, where our appointment was based. It turned out to be the 25th anniversary of IVC and to ‘celebrate’ the occasion, they were throwing a small cocktail party as well as holding a concert of religious hymns. The cocktail party was held in the space outside the Cathedral where about a hundred people had gathered. They were all dressed well, in smart casual outfits and were heading straight for the food tables. ML was worried that we might not have anything substantial to eat and had made us ham and cheese sandwiches before we left the house in case we felt puckish in the car on the way back.
As it turned out, there was an ample amount of cocktail and finger food on vast buffet tables as well as a well-stocked drinks station with beer and soft drinks. I helped myself to shrimp in a cocktail sauce, fish with tartare sauce, lamb sliders, grilled chicken breast on skewers, a hot pasta dish (cheese tortellini in tomato sauce), tomato bruschetta, olives, etc. I also had a Sprite. On another desserts table, there mini cakes: chocolate, cheesecake, carrot, etc. Boy, it was an impressive and delicious spread and we did justice to it.
A Really Uplifting Concert:
And then, after about 90 minutes, and after ML had met many of the prominent folks associated with the IVC, we found enough time to use rest rooms before taking our seats in the church. We were given VIP seats right on the second row so that we had an excellent view of the altar where a baby grand piano had been set up.
The concert was being given by Dan Schutte, an ex-Jesuit priest, who, since 1979, has been writing sacred music that has been accepted by the American Catholic churches and become frequent aspects of our church liturgy. In fact, he belongs to a group of four men known as the St. Louis Jesuits—all musicians, I think three of them left the priesthood although one of them, Rock O’Connor, is still a Jesuit. In fact, a booklet was distributed to us and we were invited to join in the singing wherever we could, although at some junctures, no verses were printed, so that Dan could sing them—we would join in the chorus. Dan came on stage and was greeted with much applause as everyone is familiar with his name. His singing is also quite wonderful and occasionally, he plays the guitar. So between the piano and the guitar, he accompanied himself and drew us well into his music too. It was great because in-between each song, he’d give us a few lines to tell us how the hymn had been composed, what factors have influenced or inspired it, etc. Llew and I love his music very much and are very familiar with it. I was hearing most of these hymns after four years—as we have a completely different repertoire of hymns in Indian churches. So, on the whole, it was quite a wonderful concert and I was very happy to have some Cultural enlightenment and enrichment also thrown into the mix of exciting things I have done this week.
Back Home to Crash:
As each of us had eaten well and were tired and ready to go off to bed, we piled quite happily in the car. It had been a long concert (more than two hours—almost three) and we were grateful to ML who did the driving back. She dropped off Elizabeth, then Sharon and then pulled into her driveway so that Claudette could pick up her car and go home.
All that was left was for me to say Goodnight to ML, thank her for a lovely day and crash into my bed.
Until tomorrow, see ya’…
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