Still Being Amazed ...by Sr. Monika
At age seventy, you might think I've seen all there is to see on our monastic grounds. I know the trees and shrubs and most of the wildflowers. I know about birds, especially the ones who visit our grounds. So, can you imagine my surprise at finding a fallen, old branch covered in what looked like bright white feathers? "Who threw their duster into the rocks in front of our Spirituality Center?" I said to myself.
Helping Each Other ...by Sr. Monika
We have all heard about Alcoholics Anonymous, which began in 1935, and has helped countless people overcome addiction to alcohol. There are many spin-offs of that model, including Narcotics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, and Emotions Anonymous, (EA) among many others. I was introduced to Emotions Anonymous during my time in treatment for depression. It is based on the Alcoholics Anonymous model of support from people who have similar struggles in life.
A Cat in the Monastery ...by Sr. Julian
A few years ago now, a lovely little cat appeared at our back door. She was thin but beautiful. We knew she was a tabby, but I had never heard of a brown mackerel tabby. Was this a fish cat or a cat fish (but not really a catfish)? With light-filled emerald eyes, she looked up at us from the bush she was hiding in and said “Feed me. ” We began to feed her.
A Mug for All Seasons ....by Sr. Julian
Our lives here at St Placid Priory have a daily rhythm which is guided by a liturgical calendar. Isn’t a calendar just a calendar? Well, no, not always. The liturgical calendar is both different and similar to a normal everyday calendar. Both the liturgical and secular calendars mark special seasons such as Christmas and Easter. But the liturgical calendar also reflects which days are Catholic solemnities and feasts and seasons such as Lent and Advent.
SMU Students Come Visiting ....by Sr. Paz
Last Tuesday, April 2, was a wonderful evening. Seven young women from Saint Martin’s University visited us along with Campus Minister Nick Hoffman. I welcomed them at the Priory’s entrance, where it was very nice to meet familiar faces--Reine, Nick, Bianca, and greet new faces--Lillian, Daniela, Carina, Carmelina and Delaney. I gave them a tour of the Spirituality Center, and the Stations of the Cross—created and donated to the Priory by artists Renata and Walter Siegl.
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Care of the sick—Again ....by Sr. Paz
St. Benedict, in Chapter 36 of The Rule, tells us “Care of the sick must rank above and before all else, so that they may be truly served as Christ, for [Jesus] said: “I was sick and you visited me” (Matt 25:36) “The music that arrived to stay” is the title of a radio station in Mexico City that my mother loves to listen to.
Wait ....by Sr. Monika
I was born in the front seat of our car. Dad made it to the hospital driveway. The doctor and nurses came outside on that early, snowy February morning to help Mom and me. One nurse took my 11 month old sister, one nurse took me, one nurse took Mom, and Dad went to the ER to have his broken thumb looked at.
Stories We Tell Ourselves ....by Sr. Dorothy
I don't know who wrote this story and don't recall where I found it. If you happen to know its author, please get in touch and I will give credit. The Queen's Choice Once upon a time, in a kingdom that probably never really existed, a woman was caught stealing some coins from a local merchant in the market.
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Hildegard of Bingen: Greening ....by Sr. Angela
“I (God) am the breeze that nurtures all things green. I encourage blossoms to flourish with ripening fruits. I am the rain coming from the dew that causes the grasses to laugh with the joy of life. ” from Gabriele Uhlein, Meditations with Hildegard of Bingen (Santa Fe: 1982) Hildegard of Bingen (1098 – 1179), a Benedictine Abbess whose reputation as a visionary, healer, scientist, author, speaker, poet, artist, and musician, was well known in her lifetime.
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Day of the Dead | Feast of All Souls
These last years, with the pandemic and the wars, the people of the whole planet have a strong need to mourn all our losses. Our sense of safety and tranquility has been challenged, and we don’t have a communal way of acknowledging, mourning, and processing all these losses. For this, we can return to the wisdom of the ancients—like the Mexican cultures and Benedictine wisdom—and make them new. St. Benedict exhorts us: “Keep death daily before your eyes.