Here We Go!

Winter in Ossining NY, photo courtesy of John Korb

In many Christian traditions, advent is celebrated as a time of preparation for Christmas. It is a time of waiting to relive anew the mystery of a God who loves so much that he must be with us and teach us how to live.

This year, my advent includes another type of preparation - for leaving a place and people I know and love and - for arriving in a new place that I hope to grow to love and people I hope to fall in love with as I learn their struggles and try to walk with them on their journey.

Last week was one of both dreams & details: from selling my car & packing my things to the heart-moving moments of saying farewell to a sacred time & place and people who have touched me by their experiences, their love of others and their commitment to join me on this journey.

I now have two weeks with my family in the Midwest. Besides trying to soak up every moment with family & friends, I am finalizing my packing and the other details when you leave the country for a few years. I leave Iowa on Dec 31st, New York on Jan 1st and arrive in Nairobi on the 2nd.

For those of you who are the praying type, I'll take any prayers you have that I might stay centered in this transition. For others, I'll take any good wishes - and comments on the blog are always appreciated. To all, I am grateful for this chance to go and yet to be connected to you still at home, even if only through our thoughts of each other. I hope somehow to maintain connections through emails, an occasional text message or letter, and this online journal.

My co-missioners - the Maryknoll Class of 2009. Left to Right
Sr Genie is off to Tanzania, Sr Anastasia to China, Erica and Nan to El Salvador, Sr Laura to Panama, Minh to Bolivia, John & Cindy to Kenya, Lindsay to Cambodia, and me.

The Maryknoll Lay Missioners have a Commitment Ceremony, in which we sign a covenant with the organization that we will faithfully serve the poor in the country to which we are assigned through May 2013.

The culmination of the orientation is our Sending Ceremony. We began by carrying in symbols of our country of assignment. Mine was a small sculpture of a Kenyan woman at work grinding corn, in the back left.

Watch a few moments on YouTube by clicking here >>> Sending Ceremony

After we are called forth by former missioners in the language of our new country (Swahili for Kenya), we are given a mission cross and blessed by the organization leadership.

One fun tradition is the ringing of bells to send off missioners. This was started the first year Maryknoll sent 4 men to China in 1918 with the more solemn ringing of one bell. Now the entire community rings bells and noise-makers as a more festive tribute.

I was delighted that my parents came for the Sending Ceremony and were able to meet the other missioners & their families.

The "Kenya Klub" - Cindy, John & I wish we could take Sister Paula & Sister Noel with us in our suitcases. They are absolutely delightful and combined spent 81 years in Kenya. They offered us lots of insight about what to expect and kept us laughing & reminded us of why we are going.

The original bell which rang for the first missioners. We sent each other off on Sunday as each car drove away with bells ringing - and probably woke up the neighbors. I was the last one to leave, but one of our fellow missioners now on staff at Bethany was there to ring the bell for me.

Here we go.

Community Life

Somehow November has disappeared on me! Highlights included:

• Surprising Mom & Dad for their 40th Anniversary
• Central Park & other adventures with new & old friends
• Vigil for Latin American martyrs at Fort Benning
• Dialogue Education Training
• Thanksgiving with the Fathers, Brothers, Sisters & Lay Missioners

A photo montage of community life ...

Bethany from the front yard - before all the leaves fell.

Bethany from the back yard
Discussions in our classroom
A snapshot from class
The beautiful view from the classroom
Celebrating together on the patio
Making apple cider
Cooking!
Off for an adventure to DC
On retreat with the Franciscans
This one needs no caption
Girls night out at Sleepy Hollow
An expedition to New York City!
Surrounded by love. =)
Out for some Southern Cooking
The crosses remembering those killed in Latin America by foreign military trained in the US - including two Maryknoll sisters Ita Ford and Maura Clark in 1980 along with two other church women.
Our Thanksgiving day feast - I am so thankful to be here and for the love and support of so many!

Discernment - Am I ready?

The first weeks of the Maryknoll Lay Missioners orientation program are considered a time of discernment. It has been a time of learning about the program and about ourselves so that we can make an informed decision before committing for 3 1/2 years overseas.

It seemed a challenge to ponder once again a decision when I already felt like I already made when I sold my house & moved away from friends and family.

As is no surprise to most of you, I have decided once again to go. I feel that there's no place I'd rather be.

One activity we were asked to do was to write our own mission statement.
Here's my first attempt:

As a believer in God's boundless love, I seek to follow Jesus in serving both the people struggling to survive in Kenya and the US Catholic community that supports me, by joining my life story with those in poor communities in Kenya, working with them to improve basic living conditions so that we all might have life abundantly.

The beauty of the fall season emerging around me has been incredible. Each day has been more beautiful than the last.

Our front yard!


Croton Falls - just a few minutes away from where I live.
Croton Reservoir & the infinity edge that feeds Croton Falls

Rockerfeller State Park Preserve - where we spent our last day of discernment
Stone barn Center for Food and Agriculture adjacent to the park

Check out the little turtles sunning themselves on the rock.

The Maryknoll Orientation Program Class of 2009:
Back row: John, Sr Anastasia, me, Lindsay, Nan, Stephen
Front row: Sr Laura, Minh, Cindy, Rena, Sr Genie, Erica

Wishing you all the abundance of the season!

Welcome to Bethany

In the time of Jesus, Bethany was a place of his friends Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. It was a place of stories and friendship, a place of faith and new life. Now Bethany has become my new home. In the past two weeks, this Bethany has become a place for me of sharing stories, new friendships, a deepening faith and a place to seek new life.

Bethany is the name of the Maryknoll Lay Missioner’s house in Ossining, New York, and where I am spending 13 weeks preparing to join my life story with those of the people of Kenya. I join eight others on a similar journey and three Maryknoll sisters in a orientation program designed to help us thrive in our overseas experience.

So far … some of the things we’ve been learning about:
- each other! We each had to design a name card & use visuals to tell our life story.
- Scripture
- History of Maryknoll
- Maryknoll Lay Missioners vision and current direction
- Transitions
- Policies & logistics
- Vaccinations & diseases we don’t want to get but might anyway

One part of our preparation has been sharing the people that have helped make us who we are and supported us on our journey in life so far. I was overwhelmed by the love that I have been given by so, so many people. So I want to start this on-line journal with my gratitude for all of you – as I expect many of you are the ones reading my story. Thank you. Thank you for being who you are and sharing some part of your life with me. Thank you for supporting me and for loving me.

Enough sap! Time for a few photos…

The beginning of Autumn has been beautiful
One of the extracurricular activities ... apple picking. Last week apple crisp. Next week hand-pressed apple cider.

The Maryknoll Society has a farm staffed by volunteers that donates all the fresh produce to local food pantries. I have spent a few quality hours weeding beets & connecting to my roots. Right beneath the sunset (out of view) is the Hudson River.