Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

My journey started with a determination to respond to God’s call. I would follow the steps and see if doors would open to a Black woman requesting membership. I would follow all the steps and if the doors did not open, I could say with a clean heart, God I tried. I requested to experience living in “community” that was granted. I lived a semester with sisters and experienced their prayer life, daily routines, celebrations, house meetings, ministries, and concerns. We became family together.     When I asked to start the entrance process the answer was yes and the rest is history.   There is not only room for sisters of color, but also a need for representation of sisters of color in religious life.   Pat Rogers, OP Glendale, WI

I’ve been around since 1970 so I know I belong here.   It’s a Senior Living apartment but the spaciousness of the rooms don’t make it seem like an apartment.  We have an elevator and an in home washer and dryer, plus room for storage and a pantry. There are eight of us in our building, and there are 24 apartments.  Four others live in other buildings in the complex of nine. When we get together for prayer, it is special.  We often have dinner together.  And we have great birthday parties!  One person has a large screen TV, and so the other night we watched the live-screening of a sister’s wake service at the Mound.   The Y is nearby so we often catch rides there to work out.  People are very generous  with rides for those of us who no longer drive.          One of the sisters even has a special meal for Thanksgiving, Christmas and E...

I love Celebrations!!  Who doesn’t?  Last week was a week of celebrations.  My sisters and I gathered at my youngest sister’s (Janet) home.  It was Sister’s Week, a yearly event during which the five of us celebrate being sister to one another.  While there, we hosted a baby shower for Janet’s daughter-in-law and newest grandchild, a little boy much anticipated and longed for after Ami’s 3 miscarriages.  The new baby has an older brother who is 16.  What a change and celebration for that family! We also celebrated Janet’s birthday by participating in a murder mystery train ride.   Between courses of a five-course dinner, actors did scenes from a murder mystery play in each of the dining cars.   It was up to the train riders to guess the murderer and the motive.   We shared in the meal, delightful conversation, and of course, speculations regarding “who done it.”   None of us made the correct deduction, but we celebrated well....

Attending a number of significant celebrations during the last couple of months has both buoyed me up and made me think about the role of celebrations in my life.  My older brother died on May 11; his wake and funeral were held a week later.  In mid-June, I attended the first profession of one of our novices, and a week later I returned to the Mound for a morning ceremony expressing gratitude toward the out-going leadership team and the afternoon installation ceremony of our new leadership team.  Last weekend, I was back at the Mound to celebrate with our 50- year Jubilarians. As are the wakes and funerals of our Sisters, my brother’s wake and funeral were celebrations of his life.   Dozens of details from the grandsons who carried his casket to the young granddaughter who played taps at his grave reflected the good life Tony had lived. In common with many ordinary good people, he and his wife concentrated on raising good children.   They, in turn, have con...