Insights from the Life of a Franciscan Sister

[sr.christinaosf]

We just got a huge donation of corn, which happens twice a year...We cleaned it and left some ears whole; this evening we finished up cutting some off the cob to freeze that way.  We froze about 60 lbs. worth of corn cut off the cob, plus all the other whole ears.  We had fun making 'corny jokes' this morning while doing it.  For example, why was the farmer famous?  He was out-standing in his field.  

[AccountDeleted]

We just got a huge donation of corn, which happens twice a year...We cleaned it and left some ears whole; this evening we finished up cutting some off the cob to freeze that way.  We froze about 60 lbs. worth of corn cut off the cob, plus all the other whole ears.  We had fun making 'corny jokes' this morning while doing it.  For example, why was the farmer famous?  He was out-standing in his field.  

Love it! Sometimes the silly ones are the best. 

 

[sr.christinaosf]

One hundred and One…Trees

AUGUST 12, 2015 / OUR FRANCISCAN FIAT / 

In honor of the 775th anniversary of our Congregation’s beginning back in 1241, our sisters throughout the world have embarked on a Tree project, hoping to have planted 775 trees by the time of next year’s celebration.

Our province here in North Dakota is taking its part…In our past Franciscan ReviewNewsletter, we advertised that if people would like to plant a tree in honor of the occasion, they are encouraged to let us know.  Somehow I, Sr. Christina, was given the task of collecting the data and making sure information is gathered, etc.  I’m not exactly a “tree-hugger” but hope to do my assigned job well.

I created a spreadsheet and recently reached the 100-tree mark.  I informed Sr. Ann Marie, our provincial superior, of the milestone.

This past week, for my weekly Bible study I hold for our residents at St. Anne’s, I started a unit on the fruits of the Spirit.  Along with reading pertinent scripture passages and discussing them, we also have a tree.  I found clip art of a tree online and printed it on an 11X17 sheet of paper, along with various pictures of fruit, so each week we will be adding one “fruit” to our tree as we study one more fruit of the Spirit. We started with love this past week.

If I include this “tree” as part of our Dillingen Franciscan tree project, we now have 101 trees!  More important than any tree planting, however, I hope we can grow daily in the fruits of this last tree: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity.  I guess a daily prayer to the Holy Spirit would be a good place to start.

Sr. Christina M. Neumann

[AccountDeleted]

Good job Sister Christina! 

    

Edited August 13, 2015 by nunsense

[sr.christinaosf]

Where do you find all these pictures with quotes?

[marigold]

Where do you find all these pictures with quotes?

You just have to ask Uncle Google really nicely

[sr.christinaosf]

I thought of that afterword; but you might have to know what you're looking for.  

I'm activity director for a few days now since our main director is out of town visiting family.  It is going alright.  Today I had current events, exercises (I found Youtube videos for senior exercises), cards, a dance, and the game "Sorry."  Tomorrow I will guess my way through Sing-along, bingo and yahtzee.  

[AccountDeleted]

If you go to the main Google website, up in the top right corner there is a button called 'images'. click on that and then type in the name ofwhat you want to search for.You can also type in the name first, and then choose the button 'images' later at the top. If you specifically want words typed on an image, these are usually found under 'meme'. So, for example, after your post about trees, I typed in 'meme trees' and was given a selection. Not all memes are "G" rated so just be aware. You can find some good quotes though, and celebrities faces are used a lot in memes.

 

[sr.christinaosf]

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary…A beautiful day with some beautiful customs

AUGUST 14, 2015 / OUR FRANCISCAN FIAT / 

our Fatima grotto

Recently, we were discussing the (then upcoming) feast of the Assumption at table.  Sr. Elaine, who had been a teacher for a time, shared that this was the day on which they would travel to their school assignments for the new year.  She did not remember all the details, but recalled that they used to recite an antiphon a number of times: “Mary has been assumed into heaven: the angels rejoice. They sing for joy and praise the Lord.”

I, personally, never took part in this, but have my own valuable memory connected to this feastday.  Fourteen years ago, I made the St. Louis de Montford Marian consecration on this day.  The last couple of years, I have forgotten to do the prayers and readings in preparation for renewing it, but I still remember the feast in conjunction with this.

I also remember my mother, who grew up on a farm near Karlsruhe, ND, sharing her memories of this special day for our Lady.  They would pick chokecherries, rather than take part in the normal farm labor.  Even though one normally might take a break on a holy day (the phrase from which holiday is derived), she remembers that they didn’t get a break from the chokecherries even after finishing.  She would close her eyes in the evening and still “see” chokecherries before her.

Carmel of Mary Pilgrimage site

One beautiful custom held around the feast of the Assumption is the annual diocesan pilgrimage at the Carmelite monastery outside Wahpeton, ND.  I was privileged to take part in this beautiful gathering in honor of our Blessed Mother once when I was in formation in Hankinson.

[sr.christinaosf]

Tonight, when I close my eyes, I might just "see" corn kernels.  We husked 11,000 ears of corn today and got most of them off the cob to freeze for the year to come.  I'm a bit tired, but, courage, my soul! - I still need to plan Bible Study for our residents tomorrow.  We'll finish the cutting in the afternoon; we have under 200 ears left to do.

[sr.christinaosf]

…As people rejoice at harvest ~ a fruit of the Spirit is Joy

AUGUST 18, 2015 / OUR FRANCISCAN FIAT / 

This morning at Bible Study, we reflected on the second-listed fruit of the Spirit, that is joy.  As we continued our series of lessons on these Fruits, one of our residents put a little picture on our tree to represent the fruit of joy.  Ironically, it was a piece of watermelon (which does not really grow on trees).  This morning, we talked about how joy comes from the Holy Spirit, even amidst the challenging times of life.

As I walked out into the hall, after concluding the session and helping put things in order, I was met by one of our apartment residents.  She proudly showed me a small collection of potatoes she had harvested from our little bathtub garden.

I was elated, and went around the building, showing off this “fruit” of our labors.  The potatoes’ harvester saw me and said, “You’d better be careful; you’re beaming too much!”  What an appropriate postlude to a scripture study on joy!

Scripture, itself, alludes to this connection between harvest and joy.  Isaiah 9:2 says “You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing; They rejoice before you as people rejoice at harvest…”  We pray Psalm 4 at night prayer, saying “You have given me greater joy than they have from an abundance of corn…”  Furthermore, Psalm 126 (which we also pray from time to time) says “Those who go forth weeping, carrying sacks of seed, Will return with cries of joy, carrying their bundled sheaves.”  Today, especially, I can relate.

Although the potatoes were fairly dirty from their former place of residence, they produced joy.  So, in our lives, amidst the “dirt” of struggle and challenges, we can reap a joyful harvest in our labors in our Lord’s vineyard.

Sr. Christina M. Neumann

[sr.christinaosf]

 

“One Way or Another, it will probably go to Waste/Waist.” by Our Franciscan Fiat

A few evenings ago, I was discussing things of a culinary nature with one of our apartment residents, who also volunteers here.  Jokingly, he chided me: "One way or another, it will probably go to waste/waist." (I cannot decide which spelling to use here.)

This little quip seemed quite apropos for this little piece I decided to write about my latest baking endeavor.  We had quite a bit of ice cream left over from an event several weeks ago, and I noticed that it was "going no where fast," as I like to say.  With no immediate or definite plans or ideas for the use of this diary delight, I talked with our activity director and we decided that I might as well make ice cream cakes for "Birthday Bingo."

Once each month, our activity department recognizes those with birthdays, we sing to them, and they get an extra bingo card.  After the games, birthday cake is served.

I don't like to waste, and was up to the challenge of finding tasty ways of transforming the remaining ice cream.  Part of the challenge is always the dietary restrictions some of our residents face; some cannot have chocolate and others cannot have nuts.  Consequently, I made one large caramel fudge brownie ice cream cake and a couple Reese's peanut butter ones.

What is really fun and rewarding, along with making use of supplies that might other wise end up getting tossed, is to see the enjoyment others get from it.  It made my day to hear people say how much they enjoyed the cakes and how much they liked them.  Unfortunately, it will probably go to their waist, though.

[sr.christinaosf]

I posted the video forom my reception as a novice on a different thread and thought I'd share it here, too.

[sr.christinaosf]

Looking back on a Journey

AUGUST 24, 2015 / OUR FRANCISCAN FIAT / 

As I look up August 25 in the little name booklet kept in my “Office book,” I note that it is Sr. Gisholda’s anniversary of death.  I keep this listing readily available; in our community, we remember our Sisters in prayer on their death anniversary as well as praying for them on their special days of celebration (name day and birthday).

Sr. Gisholda’s name and date of death will always stand out to me because, although I never knew her, her memory has its place in my vocation story.

It was on the day of her funeral that I arrived back in Hankinson for an extended stay.  I had visited the month before for a few days in July of 2004.  This time, however, I would stay a number of weeks.

After my initial visit, I returned home to attend a friend’s wedding and serve my time of jury duty.  I remember still the words of the Sister who was hosting me when she showed me to the room I would occupy on my first stay there: “Don’t be scandalized,” she said, “our rooms aren’t all like this.”  This is because the room they had available at the time was a rather spacious and well-furnished one, normally used for special guests.  The one(s) they normally would have offered a visitor such as myself were probably unavailable for some reason; I don’t remember the details.

Another peculiar memory I have of my first visit with Franciscans in Hankinson was from a vacation school we visited when I was there.  I went with Sr. Jean Louise as she was giving a “vocation talk” at a summer camp in nearby Foreman, North Dakota.  In the course of events, she showed the children her ring and asked them if they knew what “IHS” (which is inscribed here) meant or stood for.  One little boy ventured to guess to stand for “I hate Satan.”  Some things, you just don’t forget!  (In case you don’t know, in reality the letters in this monogram are actually an abbreviation for the Holy Name of Jesus in Greek.)

So why did I come back, and how did I eventually come to bear this beautiful ring myself as a Franciscan Sister in our community?   I guess what I must say is: God has been good to me and has led me graciously along this journey.  I do remember, from that first visit at St. Francis Convent in July of 2004, the sense of relief which engulfed me after much searching.  I had felt called to religious life since the summer of 2000 but until then I didn’t know where I would be privileged to begin this journey.

In closing, may I use the words St. Francis’ did to close his own Canticle of the Creatures?: “Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks
and serve Him with great humility.”

[marigold]

What a cutie at your clothing! And I really, really like the custom of keeping the dates of the departed sisters.