Visit to Japan: Testament to Kindness

Narito Airport, Tokyo

This week, our Japan blog is a story about kindness: the kindness that enabled S. Olivia Forster and S. Colleen Haggerty to travel there, and the kindness with which they were greeted during their stay.

Mr. Tom Haeg decided to gift Sister Olivia with this trip because her experience there and the love he also has for Japan. When Tom graduated from Saint John’s University, he decided he wanted to go to Japan. He came to the high school, where S. Olivia was principal at the time, looking for a job. Sadly, she had to tell him there were no openings in their school. So off he went to law school and practiced law; he also became a judge in Hennepin County, Minn. Years passed. One of Tom’s daughters graduated from the College of Saint Benedict in 2009. At the ceremony he inquired whether S. Olivia was around. She was. Thus-- friends once again!

Tom had continued to have a special interest in Japan; when he retired, he “took up” that interest in earnest. S. Olivia put him in touch with Mr. Mitsuo Takada (an acquaintance of hers for many years, and the principal of the school in Japan at the time) and the rest is history. Tom has been invaluable in helping with host families, outings, etc., when Japanese students come to America.

Both S. Olivia and Tom have kept in touch with Mr. Takada, who has visited in America a number of times. In October 2012, when the Sisters were the visitors to his country, he was there to greet them at Tokyo airport and kindly saw to it that they got through immigration and on the right bus to the hotel. The next morning he also made sure they were at the right terminal for the connecting flight to Muroran, Hokkaido. On their day of departure, two weeks later, he was once again at Narita airport in Tokyo to bid them farewell. He had travelled from Kyoto-- some distance from Tokyo-- for each of these meetings!


From Observations and Notes, collected by Colleen Haggerty, OSB

Japan, October 2-17, 2012

The Blessing of Books

I never know whether I like November or not. On the one hand, although I love winter and I'm looking forward to snow and brittle sunshine, I don't like the sense of the year fading. I don't like the damp, grey days. I don't like the hour going back and the start of long, dark evenings. On the other hand, I like the cosiness of being indoors and the thought of curling up with a good book.

Thinking about how I'm looking forward to cosiness and books set me off on a train of thought that brought back lots of happy memories, like lying on the rug, by the fire, reading 'When We Were Very Young' by AA Milne, with my mother. I'd read a poem and then she'd read one and we'd keep changing off. By the way, I'll mention here, that I'm not going to launch into a tirade about why books are better than electronic means of reading. All sorts of reading is fine. It's simply that I have a lot more experience of reading printed books than anything else.

So, what do I love about books and reading? I love the preliminaries: browsing in a bookstore or library, the feel and the smell of books. I love the promise of dipping into other worlds, learning something new, engaging with lives and events that I would otherwise never have access to. When I get the book home, I even enjoy the stage of osmosis, where it sits on the shelf for an indeterminate length of time and I feel that simply by having it there, some kind of knowledge is seeping into my soul. Once I begin actually reading, I love the fact that I can enter so intimately into other lives, times, ways of being. This is true of all sorts of books, whether fact or fiction.

I read all sorts of books, but here's something key that underlies my love of reading, and it's the fact that reading makes me think. It keeps my mind alive. I don't read the words and believe them because they are there on the page. I mull over them, criticize them, decide if and why I agree. And it's not just about forming opinions and keeping my mind alive. It's about assimilating the world, as I learn about it, into my life of faith and prayer. Reading makes me a more rounded, whole person, more capable of bringing the needs of the world, as it is and not as I'd like it to be, into my heart and prayer.

Karen Rose, OSB

Visit to Japan: The High School

Two of our Sisters, Olivia Forster, OSB (left), and Colleen Haggerty, OSB (below right), recently visited Japan, and there’s quite a story behind their visit. Every Thursday during November, we’re going to share something of their journey with you, based on the observations and notes collected by S. Colleen and approved by S. Olivia.

First of all a little background: the reason they made the visit was because S. Olivia was principal at a high school in Muroran, Hokkaido, Japan. The high school was begun by our Sisters in 1960, and has flourished for over 52 years. Following the leadership of S. Benedice Schulte, who built the new school, S. Olivia became the second principal, and remained in Japan for 20 years. The history of the school is recognized by the current leadership. S. Colleen reports that their effort to recognize the Benedictines, and Sister Olivia in particular, was VERY evident during this two-week visit.

The school, now named Kaisei Gakuin High School ("Star of the Sea" High School), is one of 11 Catholic High Schools in Japan. At its height, there were 500+ students enrolled; this year there are 175. Most of the students are not Catholic. The present principal is Kenji Kagawa, and the vice-principal/head teacher is Toshiaki Sugawara whose wife, Mineko, is a soprano opera singer. The staff includes two Catholic teachers of English: Jack Brodowski, an American who has lived in Japan for 11 years, and is married with two children, and Hiroshi Yamane who is married with two children. A third English teacher is another American, Matt Benscoter. Even though most of the students are not Catholic, these men work together very well to promote the school as a Catholic school.

Next week, we’ll share how an act of great generosity enabled S. Olivia and S. Colleen to travel to Japan.

Adapted from OBSERVATIONS AND NOTES collected by Sister Colleen Haggerty as she accompanied Sister Olivia Forster on a “gift” trip to Japan - October 2-16, 2012.

In Praise of Chicago

IN PRAISE OF CHICAGO

I am spending the current academic year in Chicago at CTU (Catholic Theological Union) in the Institute of Religious Formation. 

When I left for Chicago in late August with a car filled with suitcases and boxes, I knew very little about the city to which I was going other than it was a BIG city.  In fact it took me two hours to drive from the outskirts of the city in the North end to Hyde Park at the southern end.  But I knew a few things: that President Obama was from Chicago, that it was on Lake Michigan, and that at one time there were famous gansters living here. I was also familiar with the names of the sports teams. However, I was not prepared for what I discovered over the past two months. Did you know that outside of Warsaw, Poland, Chicago has the largest concentration of people of Polish descent in the world and that there is a multitude of ethnic neighborhoods all around the city? The photo above was taken on a glorious September day when a group of us from CTU took a boat ride along the Chicago River to see the extraordinary architecture, both old and new. The boat also took us through the lock seen in the picture and we went up and down Lake Michigan for several miles. And so I am learning that there is much to discover about this beautiful city: the parks, the waterfront, the neighborhoods, the festivals, etc.

I also discovered that Chicago is a  "religious" city.  There are churches everywhere.  I am not sure they are as well attended as they once where but they tell a story of what this city was in the not too distant past.  I knew when I left Saint Benedict's that I would be meeting many people of  religious communities at CTU; what I did not know was the number of religious communities that have a home in Chicago, mostly for their people in formation and/or their administrative houses.  I am astounded at the many names of communities that I have never heard of before.

I cannot end this short expose of Chicago without saying something about the people.  My experience of big cities until now has been that people tend to keep to themselves, being somewhat fearful that someone might take advantage of them.  Not here!  It is most noticeable on the buses and trains around the city.  When I returned from California two weeks ago I had to take two trains from O'Hare airport down into the city.  I got off the first train but was unsure where to go next so I asked a young man, probably a Latino who spoke very little English, and with gestures he made sure that I found my way to the correct train. A real guardian angel!  More recently when a friend and I were going downtown to the Art Institute at least three young people offered me their seat in a very crowded bus, and I have witnessed that kind of  attentiveness to people who need a little help on the bus many times so far. It seems automatic: if an older person gets on the bus, a younger person pops up immediately.

There would be so much more to write about this wonderful and great city but time and space are at a premium for now.  Next month I will write about the experience of being a student.

Helene Mercier, OSB

The Joy of Roses

“I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds around my neck.” (Emma Goldman). My love affair with roses began about ten years ago when I “inherited” 16 tea rose bushes from a friend who was moving away. Always loving roses, but without any knowledge of how to care for them, I agreed to take them. Under the tutelage of another Sister who had been raising roses for many years, the roses survived and continue each summer to bring a special touch of beauty to many. For me, the delight in raising roses comes in sharing them. It is a joy to bring a few roses to a Sister when she is ill, recuperating, for a special occasion or in appreciation of assistance given. To add a touch of beauty in an unexpected place, fresh roses are placed in a women’s restroom that is used by Sisters and guests. Sisters delight in the roses and the feminine touch they bring.


Sister Dale Wollum, OSB’s poem expresses my sentiments:

Nature’s Surprise

Cuddled deep down

protected by nature’s laws

lies a seed of God’s mystery

awaiting the moment of

surprise.

When gradually, one-one

petals open wide

displaying soft, velvety, red

red hues

in brilliant here-I-am Glory

praising God.

A picture-perfect,

nature-perfect-

head-held-high

Rose

Sister Dorothy Manuel, OSB

Local Food Delight

It’s October, and I’m rejoicing in all the canned pickles, frozen vegetables and dehydrated fruits in our food storage areas. They appear because two of the people that live in my monastic living group have labored faithfully to make this happen. As soon as the March snows show signs of melting, they feel the surge of spring and begin plotting the garden spaces. Out come the packages of seeds, the needed trellises, posts and boundary twine. And so begins the rhythm of summer watering, weeding, thinning and fall harvesting and preserving. What has all this faithful monitoring yielded? Besides the produce, gardeners regularly hear the cheers of those around the table that are seeing and eating these wonderful treasures.

Maybe you have noticed how richly flavorful meals are when they include food grown in the local soil, carefully preserved and served on eye-catching platters. Those who watched them grow from scratch proudly add the right amount of tasty herbs and garnish. So, in addition to the healing nutrients these foods provide, there is a palpable aura of gratefulness for the hands and hearts that nurtured, prepared and served this food feast.

"We return thanks to our Mother, the Earth, which sustains us.

We return thanks to the rivers and streams, which supply us with water.

We return thanks to the sun, that has looked upon the earth with a beneficent eye.

Lastly, we return thanks to the Great Spirit, in Whom is embodied all goodness, and Who directs all things for the good of Her children."

-- Iroquois Prayer, adapted Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace

Sister Mary Rachel Kuebelbeck, OSB

Seeing Deeper

The Gospel of Thomas gives good advice: “Recognize what is before your eyes, and what is hidden will be revealed to you.” There is not much that I can do about the revelation; that always proffers the unexpected; but what I can do is recognize what is before my eyes.

I want to say something about a kind of daily liturgy that feeds the soul, viz., the amenities of a loving interchange! Frankly, I miss some of the amenities of a more loving and expressive way of being with one another! I will mention only three: a gracious greeting which includes being called by my name; holding the door for another-- whether carrying a package or not; and including another simply through eye contact. I am often reminded of the 13 year old Emily from Thornton Wilder’s classic piece, OUR TOWN, who although she had died was given her wish to re-live a birthday! You may remember that she descends the staircase, watches her mother make breakfast and then receives from her mother a much too perfunctory “Happy Birthday” greeting. Emily cannot bear the inadequacy of that tiny meeting and greeting! She so poignantly says to her mother: “Mama, please look at me as if you really saw me!”

Emily wants to be recognized; after all, it is her birthday! A loving embrace, greeting, fondness would have been the liturgy that could have fed her soul!

And we? Might we start a little revolution and make an effort to call one another by name, hold a door for another, or grant one another eye contact? Is it only the “child within” that longs for safety in the hands of an adult? Or is it the craving of the adult heart for little moments of communion?

Again, in the words of the Gospel of Thomas: “Recognize what is before your eyes, and what is hidden will be revealed to you.” If we let the quality of our lives together fade in the name of speed and/or efficiency, do we not run the risk of harming one another ... and ourselves?



Sister Renee Domeier, OSB