I continue on over the next day by foot through Dafne and on to Saint Pantelemon Monastery. This is a large monastary badly burned out in the early 20th century which is now being slowly restored by the Russian monks who live here. It has considerably less money and contributions than all the other monastaries on the peninsula and it shows. After waiting there for a while I am brought into the very ornery presence of one Russian-American monk named Deacon Serge. He appeared to have lived his life in America amongst rough and perhaps criminal society. He sits me down and in the most abrasive manner possible and tells me about some recommended reading. Reflecting on Serge I write:
“Serge is the original Russian gangsta living large who knows the facts on the ground, has gotten himself to God’s gym and is waiting ringside for the fight to begin while feeling pudgy and afraid. God have mercy on him and me!”

Weak St. Pantelemon Poem:

Sitting on a low wall,
The peninsula curving back,
Before me two points in the world.

As the last of the purple melts into blue,
And the foreground is silhouettes,
The Agean dimpled mercury.

And now sound from the monastary,
Or the Russian sitting on the same wall.

At my knees monastic wisdom,
Lent to me I may not read,
Just looking at the sky & say forgotten names.

No one ever whistles here,
Just two men far apart fishing,
Bobbing large poles in the lapping and,
Stirring up wind on my skin.

This monastary has a wall around it,
But it is not really impregnable like the others:
You can get this one pregnant.

A Fantastic Written Work on Another Athos Journey in 1979 by Author Rolf Gloss

Serge’s recommended reading:
- “The Letters of Elder Joseph the Hesychast” – monastic wisdom printed by St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery in Florence Arizona ZIP CODE 85232
- “St. Seraphim of Sarov” – a spiritual biography written by Archimandrite Lazarus Moore, New Sarov Press, 1994
- “The Bible and The Holy Fathers for Orthodox” by Monastery Books, Menlo Park, CA 1990
- “Saint Silouan the Athonite” by Archimandrite Sophrony, printed by St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, Crestwood, NY, ZIP 10707, 1999