Second Week of Advent

 December 10, 2012

Our snowstorm over the week end blest us with 11 inches of clean, white snow. My car on the parking lot looked like a big white bump until Keith brushed all the snow off of it. Yesterday’s wind moved the fluffy snow all around. Today all the schools in the area started two hours late. The trees look beautiful…and the snow piles are big! Tonight trucks will come and move those piles to the big field.

The bakery has been a busy place today with tubs of cookies ready to be decorated and sweet breads ready for frosting, too.

Saturday was the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Our Community is The Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of Little Falls, MN. So this is our Feast Day, too, along with the Feast of St. Francis. We 3rd floor of Mary Hall Sisters were in charge of setting and decorating the dining room tables. We had light and dark blue napkins and then little vases with blue water and a little white mum on the tables. After the meal the Sisters could take a flower along with them if they wished to do so.

Last Thursday the local Ministerial Association had their Christmas Luncheon here. Pictured here are the ministers of the various churches and the Sisters who joined them for a delicious lunch. The large, hand-made quilted wall hanging was a gift to us from my friend Ron.

Thursday was also the Feast of St. Nicholas. My sister, Cecelia, made this St. Nicholas for me many years ago. She even has a little mouse in the back-pack. The other picture shows our local St. Nicholas on his rounds distributing candy and peanuts to all the Sisters and the Departments.

Today was the funeral of Father Dave Gallus, a Crosier priest. For many years he came here to Celebrate Mass with us. Many of us would have liked to have gone to his Wake and Funeral. But white-out driving conditions and hazardous roads kept us all home. We prayed for him here. May he rest in peace.

Our Evening Prayer tonight was a Memorial Service for Sister Joel’s sister, Pauline Mans, age 97, who died last week in a Nursing home in Riceville, IA. Because of the distance, Sr. Joel did not attend the funeral. When a sibling dies and the Sister cannot attend the funeral, we have our own prayer service here as part of evening prayer.

On Wednesday, the Feast of our Lady of Guadalupe, and Patroness of the Americas, Father Tony Kroll will lead us in a bi-lingual Mass. We are getting better at singing the Mexican songs. They say, “Practice makes perfect.” Well, I wouldn’t go that far but I would say, “Practice makes better.”

Friday, 7 p.m., is the Christmas Concert for the two Strings Orchestras. They do so well! If you are in the area, do stop by. You’ll not be sorry you did.

Our Fioretti Fraternity of Secular Franciscans will have our Christmas party here in the Heritage Dining Room Saturday afternoon. It will be a good time.

Our Minister, Jim Hein is having some health problems. His heart is acting-up—going very fast. Please pray for him. He was at the Park Rapids Hospital and now is in the St. Cloud Hospital.

Again, Happy Second Week of Advent.

Lots of Sisters have already mailed their Christmas cards. I hope to get mine out within the week.

Peace and many blessings,
Sister Mary Lou