During these college years, as I was actively growing in my faith, I also began discerning religious life. By the time I graduated, I had made up my mind to pursue religious life wholeheartedly. The initial prompting to consider this call came from the witness of a visiting Sister. Seeing her made my heart flutter, and I realized that God was asking me to be open to that state in life. I brought this desire to my pastor, who helped me see religious life as an attainable way of living. He asked me the simple question, “How generous are you willing to be for our Lord?” It was scary to give up my own plans, but as I focused on pursuing God’s will, that fear began to melt away and be replaced with peace.

I discovered my community through a simple online search. I was drawn to the Benedictines of Mary the moment I clicked on their webpage. I found in them all of the aspects of the life that I loved and wanted to continue to cultivate. In particular, I had been blessed to befriend many priests and had a desire to lighten the load of these faithful fathers. The goal of my community is to live the life that Mary did once Jesus died, serving the apostles, the first priests. The opportunity to provide graces for the men who I love so dearly is truly a gift that I look forward to participating in. The work of a cloistered religious is hidden, like the heart pumping blood through the veins in the body. Through their sacrifice and prayer, cloistered religious convey supernatural graces to people all over the world. The Benedictines strive to maintain reverence in the liturgy and the prayers that surround it. Not only do they pursue that for themselves, but joined with their charism of hospitality, they provide an opportunity for the laity to embrace that as well.