Saint Francis of Assisi

While at the time my visit to Assisi was purely for fun, returning to class made me realize that much of what I learned and saw pertained to my path following monastic life.  The pictures in Basilica of Assisi showed how Saint Francis become a friar.  He once loved the lavish lifestyle but realized that he had a deeper calling.  He began to give away all of his belongings and clothes from his father's store to the poor. His father yelled at him and told him to give back the clothes because they weren't his so Francis stripped down in the middle of the square and began his journey as a friar.  He preached love and acceptance to all people and advocated giving up worldly possessions and soon he gained many followers.  I also saw the little church that Saint Francis built, which is now surrounded by the giant Saint Mary of the Angels church.  His construction of his small church demonstrates how preaching was very important to him, as said by the monk at San Miniato. Finally, we saw the cloister where Saint Francis and his followers often went to pray.  It is built in the middle of a forest on the side of a mountain in a very secluded area.  This is where I believe the monk at San Miniato overestimated how much the Franciscan monks preached because prayer in solitude is clearly also a very important aspect to them.  Here too, the monks offer handmade goods to help support them and I bought a small watercolor flower painting.