Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

Community “The search – for self, for wisdom, for love, for truth, for justice, for God – is strenuous and unending.   We need good companions in order to persevere in it.   In good company, in a community of conviction, the quest never loses its relevance, its urgency or its savor.” -   Kay Ashe, OP These words by Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Kay Ashe have been a source of much reflection for me lately as I continue through my candidacy year.   I find myself surrounded with “good companions” with whom I share not only vespers and meals, chores and groceries, cars and bank accounts, but also deeply challenging and deeply beautiful moments.   As someone who works directly with immigrant children, the national news has been deeply disturbing.   On a personal level, I have grieved some losses of loved ones in past months.   In the midst of this, life in community has been a source of genuine support, encouragement and growth.   “We hav...

When I pray the rosary I like to pray it alone--I can go at my own speed; I can interrupt my prayer at any time.  But one day I was asked if I would help lead the rosary once a week at our local nursing/assisted living home. I hesitantly said yes. Besides myself, only a couple women wanted to lead the rosary--one went too slowly and the other went too fast. One person stopped coming because the speed wasn't to her liking. But gradually we moved to a pace that was prayerful for all, and the disgruntled person returned. Before we begin I ask if anyone is very ill or has died during the week, or if any family members need prayer, and of course we always pray for the residents of the home. An employee usually joins us--when she first came she did not know how to pray the rosary, but now she takes her turn leading a decade. After we finish no one is in a hurry to leave; we talk about the activities of the past week, the manicure jobs, family news. In the beginning I usually had...