A Tribute

We’re more than halfway through our formation, and it’s about time we told you about the people who are helping us on this journey.

Sister Ana Florinda is our Tetum teacher and is a Canossian Sister from East Timor. We meet with her for two hours on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons for our lessons. Right now she’s in Rome studying, and then she will go back to a mission in Indonesia (right next to Timor).

She is one of the most optimistic people that I know and her laugh is long, loud, and contagious : ) Just thinking about her makes me smile. She seems to be one of those magic people who can go through horrible things and suffer much, and just let it go. Sometimes she tells us about Timor and she’s not afraid to tell us the good and bad and lay it out where we can see it, but in a second or two she’s smiling her huge smile and laughing at our pronunciation : )

She has the true joy that knows even if there is some pain it is temporary, and knowing Jesus and living for Him is worth infinitely more. There is nothing we should fear. That’s something that’s always good to hear, but to see someone who lives in that reality is way better!

Sister Mel has to be included too, even though we don’t have a picture yet! We’ve been getting to know her only lately, but she’s been part of our recreation time so she gets a special tribute : ) Sister Mel (Melissa) is from Brisbane, Australia, like most of Brendan’s extended family. She was a VOICA volunteer in Malawi, Africa, for a month and she said that it stole her heart in that short time. From there her spiritual journey led her to join the Canossian Sisters.

She was a P.E. teacher! Our tribute to her is for her soccer skills! She said she hasn’t played much soccer, but she played field hockey in Australia which she described as “rugby with a stick” : ) You could tell too – she was tough! She and I took on Brendan and Chris, and even though they pulled off a win it was very close (and she was playing with a skirt and dress shoes on – I have no doubt when we play again we’ll put up even more of a fight ; )

Then there is Diggy, pictured here with Chris working on supper. A forty year old Filipina who looks like she’s in her late twenties and acts like she’s younger (in a good way). She’s a great cook and has a voice like an angel. She has an incredible story and has been all over the world, working as a missionary for two years in Papua New Guinea and for two years in Togo, Africa.

She wanted to be a Sister, but had too many health problems. She has had many operations on her spine, one that left her partially paralyzed. She is strong and optimistic and is now able to walk again with a lot of hard work on her part and the help of a many miracles from God.

Right now she is helping the Sisters in Rome with all the little details and assisting in our sessions. She led us on a week long Youth Encounter retreat. She has done these all over the world, but it doesn’t seem like it ever gets old to her. During the retreat we had a chance to get to know ourselves, each other, and God better. We all took it pretty seriously and were able to open up about deeper stuff. It was a chance to really think about spiritual side of life and apply it to your head and heart.

Next is Sister Lisa. She is from California and came to Rome to study Theology and was asked to stay with the Sisters here. Right now she is the person who keeps all the computers up to date and maintained, as well as doing sessions with us (she speaks English and Italian, which are the two main languages of the volunteers).

She’s very down to earth and good with people. It’s funny to hear her talking about updating her iTunes or referencing normal young people things. She is also very open and isn’t afraid to break through the teacher role and share personal stories that we can relate to.

She took us through sessions on the seven sacraments with a lot of information that we’ll be able to share with the kids in our classrooms in East Timor. It was something that most of us thought we knew pretty well, but I learned a lot more about the history and lots of scripture to back them up and great quotes from top spiritual thinkers. It was a good review.

She’s also led us in more informal sessions on personality types. For about a week we tried to find out what our dominant types are, our strengths and weaknesses, and how that effects our reactions with others. We also tried to apply how Jesus showed the strengths of each personality type, giving us an example.

Living in community (sharing everything) with different types of people with different cultural backgrounds, things can get strained if you expect the other person to be just like you. So it’s been good and Sister Lisa is a great teacher, who we’ve learned a lot from academically and at a deeper level.

And finally, Sister Pat, the genius who coordinates all the international missions and our daily lives in Rome. Here she’s pictured holding a heart made for her by the last group of volunteers with all of their handprints. Sister Pat is still a mystery to many of us, but she is loved and respected very much.

She is sooo much like my Dad! Sometimes Brendan jokes that Sister Pat is really my Dad in disguise and that he has followed us here to make sure we’re ok : ) Ok, it’s a joke, but sometimes we wonder…

Sister Pat is one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever met in my life. She was in her first year of medical school when she decided to become a Canossian Sister. She explained her decision to us: she knew that Jesus would be able to find doctors if that’s who He needed, but the one thing that Jesus can’t and won’t do is force someone to love Him. She strongly desired to fill that need: to love Jesus passionately and offer her life and whole heart to Him. I have no doubt that Sister Pat would have finished medical school with flying colors and could now be a wealthy doctor, but what an adventure her life is now!

She is also one of the most perceptive people that I have ever met. She notices everything and she’s not afraid to give compliments or let you know if it would be better if you did things differently. She’s a valuable friend to have around because she’ll give it to you straight, and doesn’t waste time trying to give warm fuzzies first. You know that a compliment from her is one well earned.

Because we all respect her it is sometimes difficult to accept her constructive criticism. But we can tell that this has happened with past volunteers, but that when they got to the mission site they were so thankful for her! She tells us directly things we need to be doing to get ready, and stories of volunteers who haven’t and the have experienced the consequences (example: slacking in your cleaning = giant insects and rats!).

Dad, in case you’re wondering, the reasons that you and Sister Pat are similar are: you are incredibly intelligent, perceptive, and you are often the center of things socially. Your opinion is respected because you aren’t afraid to tell someone the uncomfortable truth that might help them grow. And the same as Sister Pat: a compliment from you is a compliment that means a lot. So it’s a good thing : )

So those are the key people responsible for our formation. The first month and a half has been such a blessing, and it is so perfect that I know Jesus must have had this in mind for us. We’ve have grown a lot already, and having this time to focus on faith before we go to East Timor will no doubt make us more effective in our mission.

Wishing you all the best!

Rachel and Brendan