The First Steps

Hello everyone!  This blog will be a record of my adventures in Lacey, Washington, where I will be volunteering through the Benedictine Women Service Corps (sponsored and created by the St. Benedict Monastery in St. Joseph, MN) for nine months.  I will be living at St. Placid Priory, a monastery started by the St. Ben's sisters in 1952. 

My main duty (as I understand it now, things do change) will be to tutor writing for the two Tanzanian sisters who live in Washington.  My work and experience in the Writing Centers at CSB/SJU will certainly be put to use!  I'm really looking forward to this opportunity to share my gifts and talents, and to learn some Swahili, too!

I've been on retreat at St. Ben's since Sunday evening with the two other volunteers who will be going to Puerto Rico this year through the BWSC.  We have been learning so much and really preparing to go, but we've also been absolutely flooded with hospitality and welcoming love from the community here.  Everyone is SO excited for us to go, to share ourselves with communities around the world.  The sisters are so supportive and enthusiastic, and it has really helped us get excited to spend this year of our lives giving back to such wonderful people who made our last four years of college amazing.

One of my favorite memories so far was having dinner with four of the sisters in their home (Jane, Rita, Janet, and Bernard) - we laughed and told stories for three hours and all seven of us felt blessed by being in each others' presence.  We also talked with S. Ephrem about Mother Benedicta Riepp, foundress of St. Ben's.  She holds a special place in my heart because I visited Eichstatt, Germany last spring with two of my best friends and we learned her story from the German perspective.  It was empowering to hear all about her again, this time from the perspective of sisters who have benefitted so much from her dedication and commitment to women's religious life in the US.  Mari and Katie, I wished you could have been there!

And finally, I'd like to share a lesson I've learned each time I post.  I think the most important lesson I have learned so far (it's hard to choose because I've learned so much!) is that hospitality and service are really mutual endeavors.  Giving is not just a one-way street; whenever I give, I also receive something in return.  The challenge is to be open to both giving and receiving, and the sisters here provide such a wonderful example.  I have been thanked so many times for giving this year of my life to service, but I am so thankful that the monastery is providing this opportunity for me to serve!  I am humbled and so grateful to be able to serve this amazing community that has embraced us and sends us on our way with blessings.