In August 2009, 24 guys ages 11 to 75 came together for “Labora et Ora (Work and Prayer),” the first two-day work camp to lay the groundwork for Red Mesa’s infrastructure as a place for experiential journeying. The camp’s goal? To create a 3/4-mile natural trail leading from the base of the mesa to the plateau some 800 feet above.

Outfitted with simple tools for carving and shaping the desert soil and rock, they divided into two crews, one that started from the top of the mesa and the other from below. Though the task was a daunting one, as the group began the project the men found themselves slowly falling into a rhythm that seemed to carry their efforts beyond what their numbers might otherwise achieve.

“As we got deeper and deeper into the work, the pace took on a ‘loaves and fishes’ quality,” said Stephen Picha, executive director at the Center for Action and Contemplation. “We were making progress that went far beyond what we had planned to finish in a two-day stretch.”

The work was finished when the two crews met, joining the upper and lower segments of the trail, and shared prayer to commemorate the two days they had spent together. Durrall Carroll, M.A.L.Es. convener for the Rio Grande Region (New Mexico, Colorado, and El Paso) and one of the “Labora et Ora” participants, shared the following reflections on what Red Mesa means for him:

In terms of a place, Red Mesa is, for me, nature's hospitable test bed... a setting where I can challenge myself, confront my shadow, practice disciplines and explore the quality of my own spiritual-sensoral receptivity/awareness/awakening.

In terms of community, when I am alone at Red Mesa, presence to the richness of the “other-than-human” collective is gradually revealed to me in such a way as to simply know my place and purpose in Creation’s ongoing saga.

In terms of identity, Red Mesa is but one of my ever-patient teachers and mentors during my apprenticeship in becoming.

In terms of spirituality, Red Mesa serves as a valued mediator and moderator of the divine dialogue in which I struggle to participate, understand and embrace.

Haven’t seen Red Mesa for yourself yet? Your next opportunity will be at the upcoming CAC summer conference, Creation as the Body of God, scheduled for July 16-18.