Life's Plunges

“What plunges have you taken in your life?”  “What incredible things have you seen because of the plunges you’ve taken.”  These were the questions given to participants of Sinsinawa’s recent Health Summit to ponder and sleep on overnight.  They sent me to a review of my life journey!

The first significant plunge that came to mind was entering the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa.   At 18, I left home and everyone and everything that was familiar to me. I was both excited and terrified about what lay ahead.

I could never have imagined the incredible things that I’ve seen because of that plunge and all of the subsequent plunges to which it has led.   I’ve seen:

·      Our world is so much bigger and more complex than I ever recognized growing up in Peoria, Illinois;

·      God’s gifts in the beauty of the natural world that surrounds us and of each person in whom the divine resides, including me;

·      Both the fragility of life and the power of the human spirit;

·      The richness of diversity and importance of honoring each person’s story;

·      The work it takes to form community and the growth that happens in a community of shared values, support, acceptance, challenge;

·      God’s spirit uniquely working in each persons life;

·      And so much more….

So, although not at the time, but as I look back, I’m grateful for the plunges in my life.  What about you?  What plunges have you taken in your life?  What incredible things have you seen because of the plunges you’ve taken?

Mary Ann Nelson, OP

Madison, Wisconsin