Or like this.....
Do you know who this is?
Yes you got it! That is Julie Andrews as Maria from the Sound of Music!
When I was younger I was able to see the Sound of Music at the Buell Theatre in Denver and at intermission of the show I leaned over to my Mom and said, "you know Mama I think I want to be a nun when I grow up." You can guess what happened after the last half of the show... I wanted to get married. My perception of the religious life was that it was a life of boredom where you couldn't have fun, there was no singing, no playing the guitar, and you wouldn't be able to have children. The problem was that I basing my knowledge of the religious life completely on a musical. Not on reality.
The reality of this vocation is so incredibly beautiful and I got to experience it first hand when I spent two weeks in Cantabria, Spain with the Home of the Mother this past summer.
Jenna (my sister) and I with our good friend Sister Morgan
The Sisters weren't rigid, scary, or boring. They all had their own personalities and talents that they now use in the convent or residing communities to build the Kingdom of God. (Yes... they could sing, dance, and play the guitar if they wanted!) They have a light in them that spills over and inspires you to find what gives them this happiness and kindness. What is that?
Joy. Pure Joy.
This joy is what they received when becoming a bride of Christ. They offered their whole lives not to hide away from reality or because they were afraid of the world but rather because they were called to serve Our Lord in a radical way and GIVE to the world a hope that we can only attain through Christ.
What I can tell you about my brief time living with the Servant Sisters was that it was a time of intense self sacrifice. Even in the little things. I was forced to get ready in promptly 15 minutes, shower every other day, rarely get hot water, and have a collection of 3 shirts and 3 pants I could switch to a from for the entire two weeks. I know it sounds so selfish of me to explain these materialistic things but it's vital that you know this in order to know my slow transition near the end of my trip. This self sacrifice wasn't only in the little parts of getting ready for the day but it was part of every minute of every day. We would eat at 8 am, then at 2 pm, and finally at 9:30 pm. Let me tell you guys... ALL of the Sisters could hear how hungry I was as we went throughout our work because my stomach growl could be heard from a mile away. It was an interesting part of European living that both my sister and I struggled getting used to. Our work was another way that we were able to sacrifice for Our Lord because I am normally such a planner that I enjoy knowing a week in advance what my next week will look like... I mean let's be real... I have my next 2 years planned out 'perfectly'. The idea of not even being able to know what work I would be doing the next day was SO tough. Not only for the fact of being able to mentally prepare for what I would have to do for the next day but I also wanted to be able to physically prepare for the next work day because most of the time we were laboring. The physical labor was hard to get used and some nights I had never loved laying in a bed so much.
Every minute, day, and hour sacrifices.
In all the sacrifice there was also an extreme amount of love.
The Sister's did everything out of such joy and love for Our Lord that it seemed to sometimes lessen the pain of working hard and laboring in the garden, or make time fly swiftly as we made magazines. Another absolutely beautiful piece of this work was that every minute was focused on Our Lord and we were able to have an incredible amount of time with Him. While spending more time with Him I was able to love His Mother that much more and increase my devotion to her. When we were making lunch one day with Sister Marina she began by saying, "The first thing you must do before preparing the Spanish tortilla would be to pray that Our Lady could be with us in the kitchen and help us prepare a good meal." How simple.
Our Lady was the model for our way of living. I learned that Our Lady is like the moon and Our Lord is like the sun. The earth wouldn't exist without the sun but the moon reflects that which the sun so perfectly gives. Jesus NEEDED Mary because she reflects His love to the world and is a shining light in the darkness of the world. Mary is our aid in order to get to Our Lord. We began our day with Jesus and ended it with Him which gave us strength each and everyday to continue working hard and sacrificing- we knew there was a purpose to it all.
My heart needed this time of self sacrifice.The days passed and the idea of getting ready in 15 minutes got easier, showers became a lovely gift, and cold water was a time of repentance and prayer. I was slowly making a transition from a "me centered" world to a "God centered" one. My heart was like the story in the book of Hosea. The story goes that Hosea was told by God to marry a prostitute and listening to God he did just that, but the problem was the she would run away from him and return to her old ways.But each time Hosea would run after her and bring her back home.
Our Lord had to take me out into the wilderness to learn love again in order to be at home with Him. Early one morning during holy hour I came upon that exact reading, "But look, I am going to bring her and lead her into the desert and speak to her heart. 17 There I shall give her back her vineyards, and make the Vale of Achor a gateway of hope. There she will respond as when she was young, as on the day when she came up from Egypt."
That was me.
He just wanted me to respond to Him and return back to His love and out of my own selfishness.
I just had to live a life of self sacrifice for two weeks.... that's it.
I fell in love with Our Lord all over again because, while living with these women who had devoted their entire life to their relationship with Him, He was at the forefront of everything we did. It was through the example of the Servant Sisters that I wasn't going to be afraid of what my relationship with Christ might mean, and the sacrifices I may have to make. The fact was that Jesus called me back to simply be His daughter and soak in His goodness.
Don't be afraid to look into ALL the beautiful vocations. If you are meant to be a wife, consecrated, or bride of Christ- it will all be for the glory of He who made you. He created your heart and will give you whatever strength necessary to live out your vocation.
Trust in Him.
Work, work, work, work, work...good stuff again though!!
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