New Year (and School) Begins

Home again. Home again.

After two weeks off, it is hard to believe that I'll be headed back to school tomorrow morning. I had a wonderful Christmas with my family (I'm assuming Clue is still in progress), had a few days to visit friends, and enjoyed a rousing Rock Band Rock Concert at my brother's on New Year's Eve. We all dressed like rock stars and had a smashing good time.

On New Year's Day I headed to St. Louis for the beginning of our End of the Year Retreat. In our earliest documents, our founder, Fr. Medaille, calls all the sisters to days of recollection as we end one year and begin another. Sr. Marcia Allen, a Concordia CSJ, presented on the connections between our CSJ spirituality, our Maxims, and our consecration to the Trinity and the Holy Family. We shared our prayers and desires, our accomplishements and our challenges. We continue to deepen relationships, key to what it means to be a CSJ. The material was great--lots to think about--and the time with my sisters even better. I was amazed once again, and always, at the connectedness of all things, everything with a common thread. My closing reflection was on awareness and how a deeper awareness leads me to deeper relationships, to deeper loving, which brings me again to deeper awareness into deeper loving, to deeper awareness, to deeper loving, etc., etc. So many cycles to life.

At this point I've got almost all of my things unpacked and am looking forward to going to bed a bit early tonight in preparation for a busy week ahead.

Peace.

--Sarah