“The beauties of nature must lift up your soul to your Creator. You will look upon them spread before you like an open book.” – St. Julie Billiart
I am first generation Irish, the fifth child of hardworking parents. Our life was simple but we didn’t lack for anything. We grew our own vegetables and kept chickens for eggs.
I went to grammar and high school with the Sisters of Notre Dame and felt this inner call to be a religious but I also really wanted to marry and have a family. After high school I worked for eight years and ran from this call. In the end I made a decision to enter and felt peace.
My last teaching mission was perhaps my favorite. Many of the students were from the Projects and had difficult backgrounds. I strove to be firm and fair, but with a sense of humor. On a trip to the public library, the boy with the largest head tried to take a picture of his head on the Xerox machine while another attempted to photocopy a $20 bill he had stolen from his mother. We were expelled from the library…no sense of humor!!
I also taught senior citizens about the legislative process and our work led to the filing of a Bill that would benefit the elderly poor of Boston. The Bill was eventually signed into Law. This was very rewarding.
I am grateful for my varied life experiences and for the freedom the Congregation gave me to explore different expressions of ministry.