Pause and Pray

Sister Leonore Mandernach praying in the
Oratory, taken by Sister Nancy Bauer

How do you live each day? After I read a quote by Muhammad Ali, “Don’t count the days. Make the days count,” I was energized by these words with a desire to learn how to live my life to the fullest each day. After prayer and reflection, I realize the power of the words lies within each of us. So, I began to think that in order to do just as the quote inspires me, I simply need to listen to my body and breathe in each moment of each day. 

So, now I do this every morning; when I end my private prayer, I take time to reflect upon each breath; I take it in and then let it go. By doing this natural life-sustaining act in a slow manner, I am aware of being alive. A breath can also become a pause in my day, a reminder to stay present in the moment, a reminder to make the day count, to live it to the fullest. 

I believe that as I practice breathing slowly, everything else will fall into place. I will not rush through an activity, no matter how full my day may be; I want to remember that each moment is important. As we live through the coronavirus, as we stay at home, remember to pause and pray. At Saint Benedict’s Monastery, we have created pauses during our prayer hours, a minute or two to breathe and reflect on the reading we have just listened to.

If you would like more information about our common journey, please contact Sister Lisa Rose at lrose@csbsju.edu.

Lisa Rose, OSB