Blessings upon Blessings

Did you see the super-eclipse Sunday night? I did not. It was cloudy. The pictures look great.

Many of spent many hours in front of TVs this past week watching the various events that were part of Pope Francis’ visit to the United States of America. It was wonderful to have Pope Francis in our country. I found his messages were gentle, encouraging, informative, motivating and strong. He spoke to all: the old, the young, religious, priests, bishops, the laity, prisoners, handicapped , civic and church leaders. May we heed his messages and become better people. God bless Pope Francis. He asked for our prayers. Let’s do it.

I liked what he said to Elders: “Elderly people…are a storehouse of wisdom forged by experience and [they] seek in many ways, especially through volunteer work, to share their stories and their insights. I know that many of them are retired, but still active…keep working to build up this land.”

The canonization of Junipero Serra was another special event. This Franciscan was the first saint canonized on American soil. Saint Junipero, pray for us.

Saturday was the first class of a two-year series of classes titled “Engaging Franciscan Spirituality.” The objective of the program is: “for each participant to gain enough information, education and formation in Franciscan spirituality so they can continue their spiritual journey following Christ in the footprints of Saints Francis and Clare as well as to be able to articulate that spirituality to others.” It’s always good when people learn more about Saint Francis and Saint Clare.

Ten days ago, Lori Johnson made her commitment as a Franciscan Associate. She cannot be here on October 11th when many others will be making their commitment. We are happy to welcome her to our Franciscan Family.

Sunday, the 27th, we had the Blessing of Animals at Washington Park here in Little Falls. I counted 40 dogs of many different breeds. We also had a little kitty and two other large cats (in their carrying cages.) After the blessing, each pet owner received a small medal to attach to the pet’s collar. Then there were treats for the pets and cookies for the owners. May Saint Francis bless and care for all animals, His Creatures…and us people, too.

On Saturday, October 3rd, we will host the 55th Annual Orphan Train Reunion/Conference. Between 1854--1929, more than 250,000 children were placed out on orphan trains from the East Coast, venturing into unknown territory in the West to settle with unknown families across America. Our, now deceased Sister Justina, was one of those riders and she started these reunions here at St. Francis. It is the descendants of these riders who now come to find out more about Orphan Train history. There are fewer than 50 orphan train riders living throughout the United States today.

Saturday evening, October 3rd, at 7 p.m., we will have our Transitus Prayer Service in Chapel. During this time of prayer we remember the Death of St. Francis.

Sunday, October 4th, at 8:30 a.m. Bishop Kettler will preside at our Community Mass for the Feast of St. Francis.

Then Sunday afternoon we will host an Open House, from 1:30 to 3:30, in honor of the Year of Consecrated Life, as declared by Pope Francis last January. We will have snacks, tours and visiting with a special Evening Prayer at 3:00 p.m. Please come and join us.

Sunday is also the Sausage Supper in my home parish of St. Alexius, in West Union. I guess I will miss it this year. That hasn’t happened too many times in the last 30+ years.

Next Week, October 6th through 9th, we will be having all Community Meetings. Please pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as we make decisions Discerning our Future. Thank you.

Happy Feast of St. Francis. I will be praying for you, all my Blog readers.
Peace and prayers,
Sister Mary Lou

These are a few photos I took around the convent. Enjoy.

Change in the seasons

Feast of the Stigmata of St. Francis: St. Francis had a burning love for the Crucified Lord Jesus and never ceased to preach this devotion. In 1224, two years before his death, when he was lost in deep contemplation on Mount La Verna, the marks of Christ’s Passion were imprinted on his hands, feet and side.

We are past the middle of the month. We’ve had some frost to let us know that there will be a change in the seasons. Is this Indian Summer now? We’ve had a few very wonderful days! Gardens are being cleaned up and wonderful produce is being brought in to storage. Yesterday our friend, Larry Anderson, brought us a pick-up full of cabbage and peppers…102 pounds of peppers and 427 pounds of cabbage. May God bless you, Larry, for your generous gift. We will continue to pray for you and your family.

Monday was the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. We have a beautiful statue of the Sorrowful Mother in our Chapel. Here is a picture of it.

On Tuesday, we had a bi-lingual Liturgy. Father Tony Kroll was the celebrant and Father Deo, from Tanzania, Africa, presided with him. I must admit we are getting better each time in singing the Spanish hymns. (Fr. Deo left this morning to return to Africa after spending a month here.)

Today our Dining Adventure will feature foods from Romania. In size, Romania is just a little bigger than the state of Minnesota.

Last Saturday (13th), was the Fall Day of Reflection hosted by the Associates and Franciscan Life Office. There were 61 attendees—a few more Associates than Sisters. The title was “Fullness of Life in God: The Trinity.” Sister Rose Mae Rausch and Sister Mary Zirbes were the presenters. It was a peace-filled and prayerful day.

On Sunday, the 21st, several of us will travel west to Morris, MN, for the Centennial Celebration of St. Mary’s School. The school was badly wrecked on June27th when several feet of water on the roof broke through the roof and did immense damage to every classroom. The building has been repaired and classes started on September 8th. I am eager to see the re-furbished building. I was teacher and principal there 13 years.

The next blood drive is 1 to 7 p.m. October 28 and 29 and 8 a.m. to2 p.m. o October 30th. Save the date.

Peace and God bless you.

Sister Mary Lou

Even when it's cold outside our memories keep us warm!

Brrr!!! I’m not used to this cooler and snowy, rainy weather. We have over ½ inch of rain in the rain gauge. I am grateful for the moisture to help get over the drought. Yesterday’s inch or so of snow is melted today. My hope is that farmers will be able to get their crops harvested. On our trip to Hutchinson on Saturday I was very aware that much more harvesting is completed there than here.

Two weeks of news to report. Half of last week was filled with our total Community Meetings. It is always good and exciting to have all the Sisters home. Last evening, the dining room seemed so empty now that so many Sisters have returned to their missions.

On October 13th we welcomed 9 new Franciscan Associates. Two other Associates made their Commitment this same weekend in Tennessee. We now have a total of 283 Associates. We are grateful that they share our Franciscan Spirit and values.

On October 9th we had the largest tour group ever. All 105 students from St. Henry’s School in Perham, MN came to visit. Many of them knew Sister Sylvia Schik from when she taught art classes there. The students came for Mass, then, had the bag lunches they brought with them, before they boarded the bus for the two-hour ride home. Father Herzing was the presider at the Mass. He moved from Perham to Little Falls this past summer. So everyone was happy to see him. He needed the students to help with the homily—the story of Jonah, who was not wanting to do what God asked him and then being thrown out of the boat. I was most impressed by the good behavior of the students during Mass and how they sang!

On October 12th we celebrated Sister Rosaria’s 90th birthday. She likes root beer floats, so that was the treat of the day. Yummy! Sister Rosaria’s health is not the best but she was able to sit in a chair and enjoy the celebration.

Sunday was Mission Sunday. We've had Sisters serving in many countries. Pictured are the altar decorations from Sunday.

When I walked past the kitchen, I saw these two big squash. One weighed 64 pounds and the other 42 pounds. We’ll have quite a few meals from those big veggies.

The American Red Cross Bloodmobile will be at St. Francis Convent October 30-31 (1-7 p.m.) and November 1st (8 a.m. – 2 p.m.)

Sister Elise will present a two-part presentation: Peacemaking in the Franciscan Tradition: not surrender, not domination, a third way. The dates are November 6 and 13 both from 6 to 7 p.m. in St. Francis Hall.

Our Franciscan Harvest Supper fund-raiser is Saturday, November 9, 4:30-7 p.m. On the menu: chicken, sausage, garden vegetables, coleslaw, homemade bars and beverages. For more information contact (320) 632-2981 or info@fslf.org; www.fslf.org.

My 3-year-old grand-niece wants to be Our Lady of Guadalupe for their All Saints Party on November 1st.

Here she is pictures in her newly-made dress…all ready for the day.

I am sure there are other things I could also write about, but they've skipped my mind for now.

Peace and blessings,

Sister Mary Lou

Transformed by grace...Transfigured for Love

Feast of the Stigmata of St. Francis…This day is remembered by all Franciscans. St. Francis had a deep and burning love for the Crucified Jesus and he never ceased to preach this devotion. In 1224, two years before his death, as he was praying, lost in deep contemplation on Mount La Verna, the marks of Christ’s passion were imprinted on his body. St. Bonaventure says, “The heads of the nails were inside his hands but on the top of his feet with their points extending through to the opposite side. His right side too showed a blood-red wound as if it was been pierced by a lance, and blood flowed frequently from it.” St. Francis, pray for us.

Last Saturday morning about 8:05 a.m., our Sister Kathleen Kelly, age 94, left us for her new home in heaven. We will miss her Irish wit. One of the things she will be remembered for is starting of the Food Shelf here in Little Falls and for all her care and concern for the poor. The Franciscan Wake is tonight at 7 p.m. and the Funeral for Sr. Kathleen is Wednesday at 11 a.m. May she be enjoying her new life with the Lord.

Saturday was the retreat day for Franciscan Associates and Sisters. The speaker was Jackie Ritter. “Transformed by Grace: Transfigured for Love” was the title of her talks. They were inspiring and helped us recognize where daily grace is in my life…if I am but aware of it. Jackie has been here a few times before and is a welcomed speaker.

Last week, too, Sister Helen and her helpers picked 14 tubs of grapes from the vines on the fence by our convent gardens. That will make a lot of grape jelly and grape juice! (I’m not aware that any will be made into wine. But I don’t know the whole story.)

Processing of apples is in full swing, too.

Yesterday I went to Lindbergh School to read to First Graders for the first time this school year. They sat and listened so well. I was proud of them. The book I read was “Froggy’s First Day of School.”

A piece of new ambiance is a quilted wall hanging above the stair-well leading to ground floor, not far from the Gift Shop. This beautiful piece of art was made by Sr. Mary Obowa. Thank you, Sr. Mary, for sharing your talent with us.

The October Dining Adventure today honors the country of Venezuela. The decorations in the dining room always give a feel of the country…lots of birds, monkeys and fish. The information sheets on the tables give good history and information on the country. I re-learn a lot of history when I read these.

Sunday, September 22nd, is Donor Appreciation Day. About 175 donors will be joining us for Mass, lunch and a program. We appreciate all our donors who support our Franciscan Ministries in so many ways.

We and Mother Earth, are grateful for the total of 5 inches of rain we received on September 7th and 14th. It is amazing how the grass is greening up again. My concern is for the trees which have been stressed for at least two seasons.

Have a good week.

Peace and blessings,
Sister Mary Lou

What a difference a week makes!

We’ve had many nice warm days, a tiny bit of rain and the golden and red trees have lost a good share of their leaves. The flowers in the little bed near the west convent door are still beautiful. For the middle of October this is still very nice.

I need to make a correction from last week’s article. I said 150,000 children rode Orphan Trains from New York City to find new homes. The more accurate number is 250,000.

Yesterday we had 7 new Associates make their one-year Commitment as Franciscan Associates—so for the year that is a total of 13 new Associates. A total of 53 Associates were recognized for their 25, 20, 15, 10 and 5 year anniversaries. We had about 60 guests for the Mass, lunch and the afternoon program. Our Sister Jean Schwieters was the program speaker. She talked about what we need to do to become a saint.

One day last week I rode my scooter out to the cemetery to visit the Sisters there and to see where Sr. Felix is buried. Then on my way home I stopped to look at the wagon load of pumpkins and squash near our garden. We will have lots of good stuff to eat for most of the winter. Thank you, Sr. Ruth and helpers, for all your hard work to make this possible.

On Saturday Sr. Mary Ann and I went to Browns Valley for the Canonical Establishment of a new Secular Franciscan Fraternity—St. Anthony of Padua Fraternity. It was a very happy day for this group. (One thing I know is that Browns Valley is a long way from Little Falls.) It was a very wonderful day.

Saturday night I attended the Heartland Orchestra Concert at Charles D. Martin Auditorium here in Little Falls. This is the 35th Anniversary of providing live symphonic music to Central Minnesota. I was delighted to see the 30+ students from Little Falls High School and Middle School, Forestview Middle School in Baxter, Brainerd High School, and Ripple River Strings and Great River String in Crosby playing with the Heartland Orchestra. What a wonderful opportunity for these students to play with a top-notch orchestra. It was an evening of beautiful music.

I just noticed in my calendar that Saturday, October 15, is National Grouch Day! How many of us qualify to celebrate that day?

Blessings on you and those you love.

Sister Mary Lou

This is the Day the Lord has Made

This is the Day the Lord has made. Let us be glad and rejoice in it! It is a perfect fall day.

Sunday evening our dear Sister Felix Mushel took leave of us for her heavenly home. She has been sick for some time. We miss her. We will have a Wake for her on Friday evening and the Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday at 11 a.m. Sr. Felix, pray for us.

The kitchen has been a very busy place these days with cutting up cabbage for sauerkraut, making sauerkraut, cleaning grapes for jelly and juice, preparing apples for pies, sauce, and freezing, and other kinds of food preserving. We are blest with so much good food.

Saturday evening the Staples Men’s Choir did a benefit concert in support of Project Haiti. Those 30 men did a super job of entertainment. After the intermission there were two moving testimonials about the work being done by the Project Haiti team in the hospital in Pignon, Haiti. Besides many other works, this group has pledged to take care of, free of charge, all children age birth to 5 who need medical care. The attendees at the concert were VERY generous in their support of Project Haiti. Thank you, Gentlemen, for your wonderful care for these poor people.

Sunday morning/afternoon the Nursing School class of 1961 was here to celebrate their 50th class reunion. So many memories, so much joy, so much to share. At the end of Mass Father Stangl had a beautiful blessing pray for the deceased teachers and members of the class.

Monday was Diocesan Ministry Day, held at the St. Cloud Civic Center. There were 1,000 people in attendance. It was a wonderful day. Rev. Timothy Radcliffe, OP was the main speaker. His first talk was, “The Community of God’s Anointed.” And the afternoon talk was, “The Breathing of God.’ Both were excellent talks. Then we could choose three of 43 one-hour breakout sessions.

Bishop John F. Kinney was the presider at the Mass. I was most touched by the special blessing the Bishop had for all the Religious who have served to build up the Church since the beginning of our Diocese. Several of our Sisters were presenters in the small-group sessions.

Sr. Karen and Alex did a meaningful presentation of St. Francis and the Wolf and ways to practice peace and non-violence in our daily lives. I was so grateful to be part of this wonderful day. The next Diocesan Ministry Day is scheduled for September 13, 2013.

Franciscan Sisters, Franciscan Associates and Franciscan Community Volunteers all had booths in the Exhibit Hall.

Sunday, October 2nd we will have the Blessing of Animals at noon in Washington Park, across the street from the Episcopal Church. We welcome dogs, cats, rabbits, or whatever animal you choose to bring.

Monday evening at 7 p.m., in our Motherhouse Chapel, we will have The Transitus. This is a prayerful enactment of the death of St. Francis,

On Tuesday, October 4th we celebrate the Feast of St. Francis, our Community’s patron saint. The Secular Franciscans and Franciscan Associates are invited for the Mass. Sr. Jean’s brother, Father John Schwieters, OFM, visiting from Brazil, will be the presider at the St. Francis Day Mass. In my early teaching career, the Feast of St. Francis was a free-day—so in the afternoon we would drive around looking at colored leaves.

God bless and continue to take care of you.

Sister Mary Lou