Pictured here with her sister, who is the same age as Hallel and joined The Community a couple years before Susan. She is very close to me on my journey as she translated for us so that John and I could understand the glorious words of Hallel's taking her habit and changing her name in 2009 in the midst of John's brain cancer battle!
https://familysoulstory.blogspot.com/p/johns-cancer-stories.html
Now with an American sister, Olivianna. Hallel has the honor of being the first American little sister! How we love to see the beautiful growth since she left for France 12 years ago! I can think of probably about 15-12 American sisters since then! Plus their putting roots down in the heart of our country just 7 hours from us!
Selfie with an old friend, Little sister Stephanie, who came to our farm and rode in the combine with Pat just a month after they arrived in America! They were surprised that with Hallel now in France for the year that we would still come to visit. "You are our family and we gained a huge family through our nun daughter!" spoke my wise and wonderful husband!
Hallel sharing our hours with Jesus in Adoration with the brothers and Sisters! So powerful to place all our our needs and family with Jesus in such a peaceful beautiful time of deep prayer!
I discerned religious life for myself and it brought me into The Church 49 years ago with my family. I was called to marriage, but time to time the Lord blesses me with time to be a contemplative, and it lifts me up!
We are allowed to stay with them and live their lives of prayer and joy for the 24 hours we are there. So special to have Hallel there with us! Beautiful bouquet in our room.
Time with Jesus doing the chaplet of St Barbara gifted by wonderful gift giver son, John! So special with the special needs that we hold in our heart for John and some that are ill with cancer yet.
Mass was so powerful shared on Sunday and much of it pertained to The Lamb of God - St John the Baptist; "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world." The Homily was reminding us of how we are called to be lambs with Jesus. One of the petitions really struck me..."For all those that are suffering, that they may be lambs and follow Jesus."
Little brother Francis Xavior ended his homily with the motto of The Community and of the Lamb - "Wounded, I will never cease to love." So powerful and hard to do but truly what we are called to as we die to self so that Christ may live through us!
LOVE this today from Fr Haggerty relating to the Gospel today where Jesus calls himself the Bridegroom
He wants sacrificial acts in the inner life that can unleash a fire within the undercurrents of our soul. He desires us to step over the edge, as it were, in offering ourselves to him in the privacy of interior prayer. He waits for bold, irreversible acts of surrender in prayer that cannot be back, like marriage vows, dissolvable only in death, yet repeated continually in life. Very intense sacrificial offering of this kind stretches love into the buried depths of the soul. These acts inflame our soul's passion for God; afterward, inevitably, they compel actions of generosity for others...
A poor neighbor of the Community, Edmond, joined us for lunch and Judith came in with Hallel on the phone from France while we shared lunch together! Edmond to Hallel; "I hope you are coming back soon. I miss you." So sweet for this mother to see Hallel loved and cared for by the poor.
Little Brothers with Hallel - how we laughed together! When they told Hallel about my antics with her paper image -"I am so embarrassed!" I have always told my children that my goal with all my craziness is to keep them humble as that is what Jesus asks of us as his followers! I am making a fool of myself too in the process!
I found this for them as it was a precious gift to us early in John's cancer and in Hallel's postulancy which overlapped. I am sure that it was Judith, who did this, but she has done so many since that she needed me to find it and send it to her to remind her. Yes, The Community was huge in lowering John in front of Jesus to be healed!
Susan/Hallel with her beloved ls Reginald in 2008! LS Reginald is the first sister to die from their order. Hallel is very much touched by her time caring for her and learning from this wise woman how to be a humble Little Sister. Reginald was the same age as Pat's mother and lived a bit longer than mom's 97 years by a few months.
Topknot on our first granddaughter, Therese!
Therese with her Godmother and one of her first topknots of sorts 11 years ago at John's bedside as we began our cancer battle!
Paper Hallel appeared at Nancy's wedding!
The 4 sisters at Nancy's wedding 10 years ago! This is the second time I have brought Hallel along in paper form. She took this out and burned it a few years later when she came home for a home visit. I am sure that this latest one will meet the same fate, and there will probably be more in the future, too. I need to end this for today as my day is escaping me... bless-bless, Barbara and paper Hallel
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