I had a chance to attend Madame Butterfly on Aug. 14, and it was the most spectacular event of my life!

I grew up in Chimayó and now live in Colorado. As a child, I dreamt of attending the Santa Fe Opera. So after many missed opportunities, my dream came true and I was able to acquire tickets to the event.

I was so impressed by the acoustics and the view of the stage. Opera houses I have visited do not compare to the Santa Fe Opera. La Scala in Italy was unique, but not as spectacular. I genuinely appreciated the experience.


Closing center shifts church's focus

In my opinion, the closing of Plaza Resolana is a great mistake. The Ghost Ranch conference center seems to have been drifting away from the membership of Presbyterian Church U.S.A., and this action seems to further demonstrate how far Ghost Ranch managers and trustees have moved away from the rank and file of Presbyterian members. The move makes it more and more difficult for this denomination's members in the east, south, and midwest to utilize the center, especially in winter months.

Having pretty much replaced PCUSA folks in the management of Plaza Resolana, this seems a fatal blow to wider political ownership and support of Ghost Ranch as a specifically Presbyterian institution to whom it was given by the Packs in 1955.

The closing of Plaza Resolana may seem to be saving money to the minds of current 'bean counters,' but it shrinks the kind of political investment of the larger Presbyterian rank-and-file members, especially those east, south and midwest of the Mississippi, so that it will actually cost more and more national involvement and donations for what is becoming an enclave of a very few "Ghost Ranchers" at the cost of Presbyterian support nationwide.