Mags Posted July 19, 2015 Author Posted July 19, 2015 I suppose the question I was going to ask, how was your week's live-in, is a bit redundant then Better to wait and see, really, even if there are nosy people on the internet! It feels as though August is coming very quickly. I'm counting down my shifts!! I'm excited but another part of me is nervous though, it feels as though there is a lot riding on this. I know that I must place myself in God's hands, whatever He wills will be.
marigold Posted July 20, 2015 Posted July 20, 2015 (edited) It feels as though August is coming very quickly. I'm counting down my shifts!! I'm excited but another part of me is nervous though, it feels as though there is a lot riding on this. I know that I must place myself in God's hands, whatever He wills will be. Exactly. I'm always nervous before community visits, whether it's the first time or whether I know them well. I visited a community in April and it was the first time I'd been back in a monastery in ages - everyone was so kind, but the first night I did feel like I'd landed on an alien planet and just sort of stumbled through everything until bedtime. But by the end of the week I cried because I didn't want to leave! You have the advantage of having already been there, got to know the sisters, and been given the vote of confidence by them that you should try this next step. It's going to be great! I'm so vicariously excited! Edited July 20, 2015 by marigold
Mags Posted July 20, 2015 Author Posted July 20, 2015 Well, it's good that you can get a month off work (or will you be between jobs?) Work commitments, and the need to have an income and pay bills, can be difficult to tie in with the need to take an extended time off. And of course, some people might not be in a position to tell their employers why they need the extended leave. We have someone doing a live-in at the moment, who lives too far from any of our communities to be able to carry on her job (we're contemplative/apostolic, so going out to work each day in addition to community life and prayer is a good way of experiencing our life), but luckily she was able to negotiate the time off. She now does voluntary work in local projects where the sisters work. We have another discerner who lives and works quite near one of our communities, so it would be easier for her to live in. But we don't make a live-in an obligatory part of the process - we do it if a discerner really seems to need it to help her come to greater clarity or dispel anxieties about being able to live in community. But of course it's different for a monastery - the life is so different, with the horarium, enclosure, silence, asceticism and the whole lifestyle - I think you really do have to try it as part of the discernment. Good for you, for being willing to do so! Hi, yes I really am very lucky, I had been expecting some resistance to that amount of time off but had none. I had planned on taking unpaid leave, and had been saving up for this, work though gave me my annual leave. I can feel for those who are not as fortunate as me. The superior at Notting Hill recommended a month stay so that I could get a true sense of their life, that is the norm for them. The week I had a few months ago was only a taster and could not properly reflect the life of a Carmelite. I know that for me there will be some real challenges re. technology, I'm so used to having my mobile on me and having my laptop at hand and then there is the TV! I'm used to there being noise of some description in my life, either at work or at home so a month of silence will be different but I'm looking forward to it. Something I hadn't mentioned above was that for some years I had been a Benedictine, leaving when I was a Junior, so I have some understanding of the way of life but I'm older now and used to doing things how and when I want. Doing this will help me to know for certain whether I am called to this life.
Sister Leticia Posted July 27, 2015 Posted July 27, 2015 The superior at Notting Hill recommended a month stay so that I could get a true sense of their life, that is the norm for them. The week I had a few months ago was only a taster and could not properly reflect the life of a Carmelite. I know that for me there will be some real challenges re. technology, I'm so used to having my mobile on me and having my laptop at hand and then there is the TV! I'm used to there being noise of some description in my life, either at work or at home so a month of silence will be different but I'm looking forward to it. Something I hadn't mentioned above was that for some years I had been a Benedictine, leaving when I was a Junior, so I have some understanding of the way of life but I'm older now and used to doing things how and when I want. Doing this will help me to know for certain whether I am called to this life. I remembered what you'd said and thought of you when I read this blogpost http://www.ibenedictines.org/2015/07/27/silence-in-the-midst-of-digital-noise/ Dame Catherine belongs to a small, new monastery in Hereford, England - though she has been a Benedictine for many years, in a larger monastery. She's very tech savvy and works at developing apps and websites and things like that - very 21st century!
Mags Posted July 29, 2015 Author Posted July 29, 2015 I remembered what you'd said and thought of you when I read this blogpost http://www.ibenedictines.org/2015/07/27/silence-in-the-midst-of-digital-noise/ Dame Catherine belongs to a small, new monastery in Hereford, England - though she has been a Benedictine for many years, in a larger monastery. She's very tech savvy and works at developing apps and websites and things like that - very 21st century! I have just read the link, what she said is so true! I haven't really rationed myself from social media so the "test" is soon to begin . I am still looking forward to having the opportunity to spend some real time with the community and develop a more disciplined prayer life. Once I left my previous community I lost the discipline I had, watching TV till all hours and doing what I wanted when I wanted. This had its appeal for a while, but I feel the desire for leading a more meaningful life. Please say a prayer for me as in my last week before going I have been put on nights which I haven't done in 25 years (and never in this job)!! I'm still zonked after doing two nightstwo days off then three more, hopefully I be awake when I get there!!
Spem in alium Posted July 29, 2015 Posted July 29, 2015 (edited) God bless you. You are taking a courageous step. I will pray as you prepare before leaving, seeking especially the intercession of St Joseph. May you experience God's peace, and openness of mind and heart. Edited July 29, 2015 by Spem in alium
Mags Posted July 29, 2015 Author Posted July 29, 2015 God bless you. You are taking a courageous step. I will pray as you prepare before leaving, seeking especially the intercession of St Joseph. May you experience God's peace, and openness of mind and heart. Thank you
marigold Posted July 30, 2015 Posted July 30, 2015 Well at least there are only three more of those night shifts. Typical to do that right before you leave. Should make for an interesting adjustment when you get to the monastery! Occasionally I've had the good luck to be so exhausted or jacked up on nerves before going for a stay that my system sort of 'shocked' into the daily routine overnight. It's a bit surreal for a while but it doesn't last
Mags Posted July 30, 2015 Author Posted July 30, 2015 Well at least there are only three more of those night shifts. Typical to do that right before you leave. Should make for an interesting adjustment when you get to the monastery! Occasionally I've had the good luck to be so exhausted or jacked up on nerves before going for a stay that my system sort of 'shocked' into the daily routine overnight. It's a bit surreal for a while but it doesn't last I know what you mean, I felt really "spacey" at the end of the shifts I have done so far, getting up at 05:20 next week sounds like heaven!! I hope that I have the same experience as you . How are things going for you?
marigold Posted July 31, 2015 Posted July 31, 2015 I know what you mean, I felt really "spacey" at the end of the shifts I have done so far, getting up at 05:20 next week sounds like heaven!! I hope that I have the same experience as you . How are things going for you? Good, thanks! I just made some travel plans...
Mags Posted September 1, 2015 Author Posted September 1, 2015 I had gone! I'm back now I can't believe how quickly August went! It was prayerful, challenging, hard work and fun. The Carmelite community was so welcoming, allowing me to live alongside them for the month. It took me a while to find my way around the Breviary but managed it, although this was confused (for me) by the use of the Carmelite Breviary for their Saints. I also participated in the novitiate lessons which I found very interesting. I now know how to make and cut altar breads and hem habits! I had several chats with the Prioress which seem to have been positive, she stated that the community would miss me when I go, and several were saying "when" you come back!! There is a lot of praying and thinking to do before that can happen. I will be having a psych assessment - one of two - on the 23rd of this month, please say a prayer for me.
Sister Leticia Posted September 1, 2015 Posted September 1, 2015 Welcome back! The world will no doubt feel fast-paced and noisy, so I hope you have a couple of days to return to "normal" before you need to go back to work. You'll also be catching up on emails and news - how much news, events and so on were you aware of? (I ask out of curiosity: I know enclosed nuns need to know what events and situations need their prayers, but many monasteries don't buy a daily newspaper, so I'm just wondering what news is conveyed to the community and how)
Mags Posted September 1, 2015 Author Posted September 1, 2015 Thank you, it does feel weird being back, unfortunately I'm back to work tomorrow, so straight back into things. I'm wondering what I'll be going back to!! I have spent time catching up on emails and Facebook, and the news. At Notting Hill there is an extern sister who has newspapers and a radio who then passes on any big news stories. I never had the sense of being cut off from the world whilst I was there, although I know that I was only there for a very short time.
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