The spring students, faculty and staff went to Subiaco. Driving up to Benedict's first monastery, I quizzed Annie on her knowledge of monastic trivia. She could tell me what Greek word "monk" derives from (monachos--one, as in single or solitary), their lifestyle of prayer, work and study, and the fact that they saved Western civilization. She could also tell me what friars are (in contradistinction to monks) and how they arose in the 13th c., just when Benedictine monasticism fell into decline (before being reformed and rejuvenated by Bernard of Clairvaux and others). Then she impressed the students sitting around us on the bus when I asked her: "What do you think 'Subiaco' means?" She worked on it for a little while.
"Su" means below in Italian, and I suppose 'sub' means 'under' in Latin, right?"
"Right."
"Iago--maybe something having to do with the name 'Iago'?"
"No," I said, "the 'I' is replacing something else. What letter could it be replacing?"
"An 'L' I think."
"Right."
"Lago?" she asked hesitantly.
"Right! It means under the lake!"
I continued, as our bus wound up a steep switchback toward the top of a mountain: "Solve that mystery for me: how could a monastery be so high up a mountain, but be under a lake?"
She responded with a chuckle: "Maybe a big swimming pool was on top of the mountain?"
"RIGHT!" I exclaimed. "Emperor Nero had a villa with three man-made lakes or pools on top of this mountain. His private residence."
The students grabbed me when we got off the bus and said: "Your daughter is amazing!"
I don't even know how to respond to comments like that. She R-E-A-L-L-Y is.
Visiting the monastery, Annie pointed out some graffiti in the below window: from the years 1759, 1830, 1879 and 1921!
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