Maryvale Institute

This has to be quick – and i mean it – because it’s almost time for recreation. This week I began piano lessons with my novice mistress – which means that to start I am doing endless scales, but I love the feel of my fingers on the keys and really want to be able to play so I am going to work at it.

The Maryvale of this title refers to Maryvale Institute ( www.maryvale.ac.uk )This is the place where John Henry Cardinal Newman ( soon to be beatified we hope and pray) set up an Oratory following his conversion from the Anglican church. Now it is a centre for Catholic education and does distance learning courses.

The great news for me is that – Sr Davina became the zelatrix ( assistant novice mistress) early this week, then we were both given permission to start a course on New Testament studies,  at Maryvale. Sr Davina rang up and found that it starts tomorrow with an overnight stay, so to our great joy we are both off tomorrow morning after morning office!. Maryvale is quite near here in Birmingham so it is accessable. Sr Davina’s father is lending us his car for the weekend so we shall get there no problem – I hope, i am navigating! We are both very happy about this and looking forward to it a lot.

In my other classes – I am going over the Rule of St Benedict in greater depth, have begun the  Vows – using the Code of Canon Law too -and Sr Benedict is doing a congregation/community history course. At the moment we are studying Augustine Baker – www.augustine-baker.org.uk/ A couple of weeks ago Sr read out a novice’s Chapter conference inserting my name into the spaces. It was very powerful and applicable even around 300 years later. Basically I am having lots of great classes and my mind is buzzing – prayerfully and peacefully of course. Will take some pics of Maryvale to share when we get back. Pray that we get there safely and on time please . Tomorow I will have been a novice for 9 months which is an important point as it means that I am now able to complete a valid novitiate – thank heavens pax sr marie therese.

Pictures

Ok, here goes, VA has once again given me instructions on how to do this so I am having a go again.

Oh, I am so pleased with this, now I have a new toy, what fun I am going to have here . Thanks VA for coming to my rescue once again, you are doing very well at this teaching lark. You do realize though that now I know who to turn to…:) Many thanks.

New Baby

Please give thanks with us, my friends son became a father for the first time yesterday evening, mother and baby are well, I saw the lovely pics she sent me- and all are very happy with the new addition. My friend is a nanny ( as we call them in Brum) for the first time, so great rejoicing. Please pray for another community friend having a baby on Monday – so who will spring the third on us I wonder?

As for pictures here, well, stupid as it may sound, it’s so long since i put them on here that i have forgotten how, so I would be very greatful if someone could remind me – in a step by step way – how to do it. I am also searching for my photoalbum password – yes I forgot that too.

We have had things going on for the last few weeks though. Last week Sr Margaret came from Stanbrook for a few days and we heard a little about their new monastery – please pray for its completion and success – they are working hard and very tired now. It’s no joke clearing out 200 years or so of things collected on the way. I guess there are some nice and some not so nice surprises. It was lovely to meet sister, she was warm and friendly and seemed to enjoy her brief time with us.

We had Sr Mary Thomas from Mater Ecclesiae here a few weeks before for some rest time and last week we had Sr Mary from our local sisters here for a weeks retreat. One of the things we do is allow other religious – women obviously – into our enclosure to spend some time away for a rest or a retreat. We enjoy it very much and they seem to too.

Yesterday Sr Davina and I emptied a large wheely bin full of grass cuttings onto the compost. It was heavy as it was half rotted and full of juice – very ‘fragrant’ stuff – also very very good for the compost, I think it’s a fast activator so gets things going. When the compost rots down a bit more we are going to dig it into our veg field to nourish it for next year. This will be our winter job outside – that’s when we clear it of weeds and the few stunted veggies that are there. It’s good to look forward to these things.

Now the days are colder and crisp I often smell fires and the paths through the wood are covered in a carpet of yellow leaves. The year has turned again. Next week I will be half way through my novitiate – 6months postulancy, 2 year novitiate =30 months; yes I will have been here 15 months on the 25th and I can’t believe how fast it has flown. Years ago in nursing we used to work 7, 12 hour night shifts beginning on Sunday. This meant that 2am on Wednesday was the exact half way point so we used to call this ‘hump night’. It means that until that point we were climbing up the hill, at 2am we reached the top and from then on it was all down-hill and we always had less time to do than we had done. It was a good point to reach and that’s how I feel about 8.15 am on the 25th. It doesn’t mean that things will be easy I know, going down hill can often be harder than going up hill, but there is a sense of being on the ‘home run’ – all going well with Chapters of course which are the scary bits. At the moment at least I feel like I may just be getting somewhere. Thats all for now, pax sr marie-therese.

St Ignatius of Antioch

A convert and disciple of St John the Evangelist, appointed as Bishop of Antioch by St Peter, martyred by being eaten by lions.

We had this reading at midday office today and I thought it was worth sharing with you all.

A Reading From St Ignatius of Antioch

      Pray for me, that God will give me inward and outward strength, that i may not only say, but do. That I may not only be called a Christian, but be found one. I have no desire after anything visible or invisible, that I may attain to Jesus Christ. Let fire, or the cross, or the concourse of wild beasts, let breaking of bones and cutting of limbs, and all the wicked torments of the devil come upon me, so I may but attain to Jesus Christ. It is better for me to die for the sake of Jesus Christ, than to rule unto the ends of the earth. Him I seek who died for us:Him I desire who rose again for us. He is my gain at hand. Be not my hindrance in attaining to life, for Jesus Christ is the life of the faithful. Whilst I desire to belong to God, do not ye yield me back to the world. Suffer me to partake of the pure light. When I shall be there, I  shall be a man of God. Permit me to imitate the passion of Christ my God. Let none of you who are present attempt to succour me. Be rather on my side, that is on God’s. Entertain no desires of the world, having Jesus Christ in your mouths. Let no envy find place in your breasts. My desire is to die. My love is crucified. The fire that is within me does not crave and water; but being alive and springing within, says:come to the Father. I desire the bread of God, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ, and for drink His blood, which is incorruptible charity. Pray for me that I may possess God.

          Whilst i may not be that brave and don’t desire martyrdom, i do think that there is a lot in that to reflect on . Enjoy it.

Oversleeping.

Well, this morning for only the second time, i overslept.  I heard the clock striking then wondered why there was no Angelus – aahhh, that’s because it was 7 am not 6 and I  should have been in Chapel not getting dressed in my cell! It’s a good thing it now only takes me 10 munutes to get dressed instead of 40 as it used to, so I wasn’t too late. It just meant that i has to kneel in the middle of choir and wait for the superior to knock to give me permission to join the choir. It’s in the Rule so we do keep this small ‘penance’.

in part i may have overslept because the mornings just lately have been heavy with mist and dews which seem to enfold us and blanket all sounds – even the big clock in the court is muffled. As the morning moves on the mist lifts, the sun comes out and the days are gloriously bright though cold and there is the smell of fires from the local houses. It’s very lovely.

Yesterday I cooked and sliced the top of my left little finger almost completely off with the potatoe peeler. I patched it up quickly and am now leaving it to its own devices to heal.

Having ‘lost’ said finger is a real learning experience though as I am discoevering how much i miss it. Typing for one thing – it is so hard with only 3 fingers on one hand and if i didn’t keep correcting it you would be trying to work out the ‘code’ to decipher this post. Also it’s not so easy to open bottles and jars, do the washing up or even get dressed with one digit less.

I think that the loss of this ‘small’ sometimes forgotten finger is reminding me that little things make a big difference, so that doing little things and being little is so very important. In a hidden way, they are actually and paradoxicallly very big.

This makes me think of something i read on the website of the society of the little flower ( given in an earlier post).

St Therese loved flowers and saw herself as the ‘little flower of Jesus’, who gave glory to God by just being her beautiful little self among all the other flowers in garden.

I always wondered how she came to be known as the little flower – and it put me off off lot i admit – but now it opens up a whole reflection and can challenge us all to accept and lover ourselves as God does and remembet that those we find difficult are also little flowers in God’s garden and he loves them too. We don’t have to someone else, we don’t have to have their skills or achievements, we just have to be uniquely ourselves in God’s garden, grow and blossom into the full beauty of being that he sees within us and calls us to. Again, allowing others to do the same.

I wonder what flower you would be and why? I had an one pop into my head which gave me a surprise and yet I can see why it is me. Food for thought.

St Therese, feast day 1st October.

This is a bit late, but still… yes, i had my first feast day last week and it was a little surreal as i have never had one before. There is a Saint Adele – 25th December! and there is a St Anastacia ( my middle name is Stacey) – 24th December would you believe but being a convert I didn’t know this until recently.

So, now I do have a day and it was a lovely feeling. The evening before a card goes up in the cloister with my name on saying it’s my feast day and asking the sisters to pray for me. There were flowers at my place in  refectory ( including 4 roses Mother had scoured the garden for)- I later put these in my cell in front of a picture of St Therese, and there were best wishes, hugs and smiles all round. No great celebration but very simple and lovely.

I also came across a card from the Society of the Little Flower – website www.littleflower.eu which is worth checking out if you are drawn to St Therese. It is a very nice site and has lots of her quotes and some reflections by a carmelite priest – I found these very helpful. I must try to put saints day up.

Oh yes, today is the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary – so happy feast day to you all. I put some roses in front of our the statue of Our Lady in refectory. pax.

Yes, Yes, Yes, Alleluia

Oh my, I’ve done it, a new header is in place, thankyou sooooooooooo very much VA for guiding me step by step through it. I can’t believe how easy it was – it’s just knowing how and now I do. I read somewhere that to stay young you should learn one new thing each day – well, that’s me for another few years now.

Seriously, thankyou VA – if I’d got stuck I would have contacted Livi – yes she just click, click, clicks and it’s there. Thankyou too Mary for your suggestions, I think I am going to have fun here trying different ones out – maybe we should try a few then have a vote. I hope you like this one to start.

Oh, and Sr D and I took the compost bin, phew what a smell, it made me gag, but it’s good juicy rotting stuff – lots of juice poured out actually – and will be there to grow lovely veggies next year. I hope they do better next year, this one has been a bit of a write off – too much rain and not enough sun. Oh well, like all things, we will try again. Now I am off to sit and pray in chapel. I love the dark autumn/winter nights with only a low light on at the back and the sanctum light at the front by the tabernacle…aaahhh, what joy and i will take you all in my prayers. pace et terra, sr MT.

Theme change.

    So, I just decided to try a change of blog theme and unfortunately found the picture at the top didn’t come with the change. What do you think, should we keep this one, try another one – suggestions welcome, or go back to Misty Look?

    Now i am off to help sr davina to move a very large bin of raw compost to her new heap and need to get changed first. I don’t think that the habit goes will with the smell of rotten food. Tell, me what you think about the theme and how to get one of our pictures at the top please. pax sr marie therese.

Update.

Just a quick one for now, to tell you I have changed some things on the About Us section so check it out.

I’ve realized my ‘busyness’ is of my own making, meaning I am not very organised and that when I do things slower I seem to have more space – sounds crazy I know but thats how it feels. I also realized that I do spend a lot of time in my cell reading and praying, just being, and that is very precious for me and feels essential. Maybe thats why I tend to come across as so busy – I haven’t worked out the right balance for me yet.

As I have written on ‘About Us’ – we don’t have a rigid, structured timetable. Life revolves around Mass and Office, with choir practice, half hour recreation, classes ( not everyday) and some conferences. Abbot David comes once a month and always gives a great conference – monastic life, lectio etc. It’s up to us individually to work out a plan and time our work – once i get on here i find it hard to get off so i am trying to restrict myself and find a better balance.

I have to admit that i personally find this much harder than a rigid, structured timetable – I can do that no probs, – this is much more of a challenge for me. I would imagine that some of you out there would find this way much easier though – if you like lots of time alone and long spaces you can get that no problem!

I have now downloaded some pics onto the computer, they are not very good but I will put some up this weekend and try to take some more.

Yesterday was first Friday so we had exposition again – wonderful -so as well as spending more time in chapel I had time to make 10 pounds of damson jam – damsons from last year as there were none this. I had a bit of inspiration when i found that they were so squidgy from being frozen that I could just pop the stones out with my fingers, tie the stones up in a bag, drop it into the cooking fruit and hey presto, I still got the pectin without having to pick all the stones out at the end. I don’t know about the rest of you but i hate the fiddle of picking little stones out of jam, but now it’s great.

Today I have started to wash more jam jars and rearrange my space – I use a corner of the old print room. On that note I am going to be good and go to clean the refectory – yesterday was a CAFOD fast day, we have bread and soup and what a load of breadcrumbs there are all over the floor. That’s it for now folks, will be back soon. pax sr marie therese.