Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

Recently I had the opportunity to volunteer at the U.S./Mexico border in El Paso, TX at La Casa de Refugiado - House of Refuge. The Casa is not really a house but is a refurbished factory rented by Ruben Garcia, founder of Annunciation House, to receive the hundreds of people released from detention by ICE and needing shelter as they prepare to travel to their sponsors in many different parts of our country. A few times a day, ICE delivers a busload of people, mainly families with young children, who have been in detention, some for up to two months. They arrive tired and frightened, not knowing what kind of treatment to expect. What a privilege to be the first U.S. citizens to smile and say welcome; help them contact their families; provide soap and shampoo and towels for their first shower in a long time; invite them to choose a set of clean clothes; provide the children with a playroom full of toys, art supplies, and balls to play soccer; provide hot, nourishing meals prepared ...

Each moment of each day I can tap into the grace of my life. I try to be aware of the ordinary blessings and my gratitude grows. Sometimes the blessings are so commonplace that I take them for granted. As I write to you today I have a visitor with me who comes each month and makes a “mini” retreat at Sinsinawa Mound. Her presence here makes me aware of many aspects of my daily blessings. She articulates the blessings she notices: . . . the beauty of our land, . . .the friendliness of our community, . . . our daily chanted community prayer and meaningful Eucharist. The more she comes the more blessings she expresses: . . . the broad experiences of our Sisters, . . .the wealth of our education and the opportunities we have to grow as life-long-learners, . . .our awareness of critical concerns of our world and cosmos. . .commitment to peace and justice. Most of all she notices the love and care of our Sisters for one another. When she leaves, my heart is filled with gratitude for my ...

There she was On the ground Hurt Frightened Vulnerable. I took her in my hands She clung to my finger Breathing, resting. There I was Talking to her Stroking her breast, her back Feeling her wings. Are you hurt? How can I help? Silence Presence Ministering Being ministered to. Connection Compassion Love. A while passed. In humble adoration. Then she turned her head Looked me straight in the eye And flew away. A bird in the hand… A word of God. Broken, Spoken, Received. With Gratitude. “This is  the season for letting our prayer be inspired anew  by closeness to nature, which spontaneously leads us to give thanks to God the Creator. Saint Bonaventure, that eloquent witness to Franciscan wisdom, said that creation is the first “book” that God opens before our eyes, so that, marveling at its order, its variety and its beauty, we can come to love and praise its Creator (cf.  Breviloquium , II, 5, ...

One of the joys of being in Washington DC is the international diversity.  This diversity includes the men and women religious studying at Catholic University.  I’ve formed an intimate, ad hoc Dominican community of sisters.  We gather periodically to break bread and share about our lives.  Raghad Saeed is an Iraqi Dominican earning her PhD in nanophysics.  Lien Do is a Vietnamese Dominican earning her  Licienciate for Canon Law .  I am a Sinsinawa Dominican lobbying for social justice on Capitol Hill.   Each of us is here without family or other members of our congregation.  Our personal histories are dramatically different.  Our ministries are totally unalike.  We live in very different local community contexts.   In our daily lived experiences we don’t have much in common. But we have a common bond in our Dominican charism and our conversations are rooted in sisterhood.  Each time we gather the conver...

There’s a new consignment shop near where I live that’s called “Stuff, Etc.” What a perfect title for my life at this time!  I’m in the process of moving out of one house while a friend moves into my former house. We go back and forth with boxes and boxes and boxes. Do you want this set of pots and pans? Here, take these cleaning supplies. It’s become overwhelming.  Years ago, before I entered the congregation, each Sister was required to pack up her belongings so everything fit into a trunk…yes, one trunk! She left in June and went off to her summer assignment. In August she received a letter indicating her next assignment. If it was the same one, she went home and unpacked her trunk. If it was elsewhere she went directly to her new home and her trunk was shipped to her. Simple? Yes! Liberating? I think so!  Is it possible to return to that tradition? Is it possible to let go of all of the stuff that surrounds us and practically buries us? What would it ta...

It is 9:30 in the morning. Feet shuffle in. Chairs are moved, making space for anyone who comes. All are welcome. The whir and beep of a medical device sets a steady beat. Wheelchairs slowly enter bearing the gifts. It is not the wine and bread they bear but the gifts that are the people they carry. A priest shuffles in and prepares for Mass. It seems to me that the real vestments worn this morning are the cloth of bandaged stubs of legs now gone, braces that steadfastly support atrophied limbs, a helmet that protects a fragile brain, and the quiet chatter and acceptance of each person present for each person present…and the smiles, even through pain. Residents, staff, friends – all the same and all uniquely special in God’s eyes. This is Eucharist in a skilled care facility. This is the Eucharist Jesus calls us to – a circular, horizontal Eucharist. We are called to be bread for each other, to be drink for parched souls and for lives so often lived in loneliness and exclusion, to b...

This has been an unusual and interesting week.  I was called upon by two acquaintances to accompany them to pre-op, surgery and post op appointments, tasks usually taken care of by family members. I have spent quite a bit of time in hospital or surgical waiting rooms.  It’s been a special time to read and reflect.  It also caused me to remember similar events when I was a younger sister.  One woman invited me to be her labor companion.  Unfortunately, I was getting ready to leave town, and so my ministry partner enjoyed that privilege.  Another time, I drove a neighbor to the hospital and sat with her as she filled out the registration form.  “Who should we call in case of an emergency?” She put down MY name. “What is your relationship?”  “Sister” she stated.   Those events confirm me in my call to be a religious sister.  By saying yes to the call to be a Dominican sister, I ...