Most of us don’t like change so we respond to it in a myriad of creative ways. There’s the “If I don’t acknowledge it, it won’t really happen,” school of thought. Then, there are those among us who face it head-on and react from our feelings – sadness, fear, anger. Some of us, a small brave, cohort, embrace change. It is, after all, a mark of being alive. All that is by God’s good hand is in the process of living and dying. Nothing – no one – is the same one moment to the next. You’d think we’d get on board and celebrate change as a sign of God’s activity – accept change as if it were a gift wrapped in pretty tissue and ribbons. I think this proactive approach to change comes slowly in our journey toward God. I think we get better at it as life gives us practice – as circumstances beyond our control turn everything upside-down and then we survive. We learn – through many changes – that change itself is inseparable from growth. Over a lifetime of bending to the realities of life, we learn that it is God’s grace that keeps us from breaking. We learn that change – even the painful kind – makes us stronger, more resilient, more open to God’s Spirit at work in our lives.
This morning I told our girls at SGHS that I am being reassigned to the monastery effective July 1st. It is time for me to go home. The joy of going home is mixed with a sadness that comes from loving our students, faculty and staff. Being “on mission” here at our high school for the past three years has been such a gift. There are things I’ve learned about being a Benedictine Sister of Virginia that I could not have learned any other way. SGHS has a place in my heart now, as do the people of Richmond. That love is a done deal. Though I will return once a month for “Monastic Monday,” it won’t be the same. The girls know it, too. But they are accepting this change well and coming to trust that every sister who serves at SGHS will remain part of the community heart. When love is real, it never ends. It is that love – that grace – that will help us all to embrace this change and trust that the Spirit is hard at work.
Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki
This morning I told our girls at SGHS that I am being reassigned to the monastery effective July 1st. It is time for me to go home. The joy of going home is mixed with a sadness that comes from loving our students, faculty and staff. Being “on mission” here at our high school for the past three years has been such a gift. There are things I’ve learned about being a Benedictine Sister of Virginia that I could not have learned any other way. SGHS has a place in my heart now, as do the people of Richmond. That love is a done deal. Though I will return once a month for “Monastic Monday,” it won’t be the same. The girls know it, too. But they are accepting this change well and coming to trust that every sister who serves at SGHS will remain part of the community heart. When love is real, it never ends. It is that love – that grace – that will help us all to embrace this change and trust that the Spirit is hard at work.
Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki
