Today a young woman, ”E,” arrived for a 10-day visit at the Monastery. She is from Toronto and found our Benedictine community through VISION Magazine and the internet. She has been discerning religious life for nearly 5 years and has visited quite a few communities. We have been in contact since August 2008.

E enjoyed an afternoon of meeting Sisters and touring the Monastery. Tonight we played cards with Srs. Rosemary and Mary Jane and, as always, laughed a lot. E will get the full tour of the grounds tomorrow. We have a schedule of things to do over the 10 days including some Benedictine mini-seminars, working with one of our Sisters prepping for bible school in a local parish, learning about my work with the house for homeless women and children, finding out about the Quad City area and having a chance to socialize and talk with many Sisters.

E is most interesting. She is going to turn 30 in August and works as a teacher’s aide in a Catholic elementary school with kindergarten kids. She also is very active in a group called Victorious Missionaries that is passionate about connecting with disabled men and women as prayer partners, friends and spiritual connections. I will share more as I learn from her this week. E is very passionate about working with disabled people. She, herself, is blind in one eye and has a curved spine – but it doesn’t slow her down! However, her disabilities do make her reach out to others.

E says she is thrilled to be here. She is very comfortable and feels right at home. I can tell she is well liked by our Sisters. Spending time here is simply the best way to discover our life and Benedictine rhythm.