Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

More than five years ago, my blog entry was based on the title hashtag. It is a hashtag I have used in tweets. In my life, it is time to revisit this hashtag. This is a time of huge transitions for me.  The limits of space here precludes going into all that is happening but to say - I am no longer in Florida but now back near Chicago.  No more hurricanes but the potential of arctic vortexes!  It is all good and some days are difficult. Here's my current tweet:  #takewhatyouneed awake ~ nurtured ~ loved ~ trust ~ laughter ~ perseverance ~ open to chaos ~ seeking some order  ~~ Breathe in ~ Breathe out ~~ The breathing is important.  It is the kind that I consider contemplative and purposeful. The words and phrases became the list as I prayed and consider: 'What do I need?' What do you need? Is there one word from my list that you need for yourself right now?  Take it.  It is meant for you. And don't forget...

Trying to be fully present and live in the here and now is not as simple as it sounds.     For many months I have been trying to practice mindfulness, which in my simple understanding is being fully present to each moment of the day, and also being fully aware of what I am doing at the present moment.     After months I am still trying to achieve this seemingly simple task!     My struggles in this area tells me how often it is so easy for me to live in the past or the future and not remain in the here and now. Recently I attended a three-day conference on being fully present in the here and now.  This conference focused on persons in leadership positions and how many times we have feelings, assumption, myths and how they usually become our beliefs and how I can act out of those beliefs.  Many times, those beliefs are a fallacy or fantasy, because they began with the wrong hypothesis.  This is how various forms of prejudic...

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...