Every year we celebrate Columbus Day with a big picnic day, full of games, food, and community fun.
We began the day gathered around the flagpole to pledge allegiance and sing patriotic songs.
Some of us wore patriotic hats and leis to begin the celebration.
Sr. Mary Veronica and Sr. Marie Augustine pose with some pumpkins a benefactor kindly donated to us.
We put some of the pumpkins outside to decorate the monastery.
Since the weather was so nice, some of us decided to explore our grounds (which encompass 80 acres, only some of which are actually within our enclosure). We’re putting up a new fence around our perimeter, so it was fun to see the progress the workers are making.
We encountered some workers putting up the new fence.
Sr. Mary Margaret drove around to inspect the part of the fence that had already been put up. It looks great!
Afterwards, we gathered in the community room to play games. We have our regular favorites, and this year some of the sisters tried their luck at Jenga.
Sr. Mary Magdalene considers her next move while Sr. Mary Rose watches.
Sr. Mary Margaret very carefully makes her next move.
Sr. Mary Margaret very carefully tries to remove a piece.
As usual, we had a lot of fun (and ate a lot of great food!) as we celebrated our country and our community, for both of which we’re very thankful.
This was Sr. Mary Margaret’s last Mother’s Day as prioress, so we wanted to make it a special day for her.
Sr. Mary Margaret enjoys some Mother’s Day gifts.
We love watching movies together, so we saw Saving Mr. Banks, a moving story about the making of the film Mary Poppins. (The community’s response: “Now we want to see Mary Poppins!”)
Sr. Marie Augustine cooks a special Mother’s Day dinner.
At noon, we gathered in the community room to eat a delicious dinner. We enjoyed talking and laughing together.
In the evening, we had games: The Mother’s Day Olympics! We divided into two teams–the Immas (Aramaic for “mother”, as we’ve learned from the TV show The Chosen) and the Miteras (Greek for “mother”)–and played a variety of “sports”.
Sr. Carmen Gloria and Sr. Mary Gabriel invented the games.
First, the team members bounced ping pong balls on a table to try to get them to land in an egg carton.
Sr. Mary Therese explains the chicken game to the teams. How many eggs can they get the chicken to lay?
Then the teams competed to see who could do best at the bean bag toss.
Sr. Maria Rosario tosses the bean bags into the “corn hole”.
Next, we played a version of miniature golf, in which the teams swept ping pong balls into a box with tiny doors. (Mothers do a lot of sweeping, don’t they?)
Sr. Mary Pauline sweeps a ball into the box. The sisters did very well with this game!
Next was the blind toss. One sister would sit in a chair and throw ping pong balls behind her without looking, while a teammate would try to catch it with a hat. Luckily, our nuns are spry and caught almost every ball!
We brought out some fun music for our final games. First, in a version of musical chairs, three nuns from each team stood around a table with five little duckies on it. When the music (“Baby Elephant Walk”) stopped, they each had to grab a duck. The one left without a toy was out, and we kept reducing the ducks until there was only one winner. Play nice, sisters!
Sr. Mary Gabriel, Sr. Mary Margaret, and Sr. Carmen Gloria pose with the rubber duckies.
Finally, we played “hot duckie” (like “hot potato”) with the sisters sitting in a circle passing around the duckie. When the “Pink Panther Theme” stopped, the one with the duckie was out until there was only one winner.
In the end, Sr. Mary Margaret’s team, the Immas, won, but at the Mother’s Day Olympics everyone is a winner and we all got prizes. We all had fun and enjoyed spending the day together.
Sr. Mary Rose and Sr. Mary Margaret enjoyed our Mother’s Day celebration.
Christmas at the monastery was fun, festive, and very busy. Our celebrations lasted for days and we had many special events and visitors.
We always enjoy decorating our monastery to get ourselves in the festive mood, and keep the decorations up as long as possible.
Our sacristan, Sr. Carmen Gloria, is particularly creative with the decorations in the chapel. The creche gets special attention to call everyone over to adore the baby Jesus.
Every year, the magi start at one corner of the chapel, but eventually make their way over to the Holy Family in time for Epiphany.
Christmas wreaths make the chapel particularly festive.
Right before Christmas, we had a visit from jolly old St. Nicholas and one of his elves (the Healys, good friends of the monastery), who brought along some friends
Dr. Price and Dr. Fidone with Bella
They brought along their new puppy Bella, a beautiful chocolate Newfoundland dog, who was given special permission to come over to the nuns’ side of the parlor and quickly made friends with everyone.
Bella takes a nap.
On Christmas Eve, we had our usual midnight mass, then sang Christmas carols on our way to the refectory for our traditional midnight breakfast.
The refectory looked so beautiful with all of the foliage and Christmas lights. The novitiate did a wonderful job decorating!
Sr. Mary Pauline, Sr. Mary Christine, and Sr. Marie Augustine with the beautiful refectory Christmas creche.
On Christmas day, we spent all afternoon opening presents from our generous benefactors. There were group gifts to the whole community, and we also each got many gift bags full of treats for ourselves.
On New Year’s morning, we had our usual Big Chapter, in which we each get a card with a saint patron and a special cause to pray for during the upcoming year.
Then we give each other the kiss of peace to welcome in another year at the monastery.
In the evening, we go around the monastery Christmas caroling, which gives us a chance to see all of the Christmas decorations in the various departments throughout the monastery.
Sr. Mary Pauline and Sr. Mary Christine with their beautifully decorated novitiate Christmas tree
Christmas caroling in the outside lobby
We love going outside and seeing all the beautiful Christmas lights our workmen have put up for Christmas.
We made sure to go over and sing to our patron, the Infant Jesus!
On Epiphany, we have our big Christmas feast day, where we play games and recreate together all day.
This year, the novitiate was in charge of the evening’s activities, and divided us up into three teams and had us play star-related games.
In the end, everyone was a winner and we all got gift bags, including some special “star bread” baked by the novitiate.
Christmas is a special time for us, when we reflect on the closing year and look forward to the next. It’s a time not just for our community to come together, but also for us to visit with our special friends and benefactors who are so generous and make our lives here possible. Thanks be to the Infant Jesus!
The novitiate recently celebrated the feast day of St. Louis Bertrand, the Dominican patron saint of novices. On his official feast day, October 9, our novice mistress, Sr. Mary Christine, led the prayers during the Liturgy of the Hours throughout the day. Then the novitiate had special activities on Friday and Saturday to celebrate their small community within our monastery and to thank God for the gift of our novices who are in formation to join our order.
The novitiate opens gifts from the community.
They spent much of the day playing outdoor games such as tennis, and then came inside to play table games like the monastery favorite, Sequence.
For supper, the novitiate had a special meal of barbecue. Then they played instruments and sang songs.
Our novitiate is forming quite a band!
The community was happy to let the novices have some free time to celebrate their special day. We’re very excited when new women want to join our community, and we look forward to see what God has planned for them!
Sunday was the solemnity of the Ascension here in Texas…and it was also Mother’s Day! We had festive meals and games in the evening to celebrate these two events. We started with Mass of the Ascension in the morning, had a delicious meal in the community room for lunch, enjoyed some free time during the afternoon, sang Solemn Vespers of the Ascension, and had yummy sandwiches and chips for dinner. After that, we went back to the community room to play games!
Sr. Mary Margaret, our “mother prioress”, and Sr. Mary Rose holding the card she designed for Sister. We each promised to offer three days of prayer for Sr. Mary Margaret’s intentions.
Sr. Mary Pauline, Sr. Mary Giuse, Sr. Mary Jeremiah, and Michelle seated at one of the decorated tables in the community room.
Sr. Mary Christine and Sr. Carmen Gloria
Sr. Mary Therese, Sr. Maria Cabrini, and Sr. Mary Thomas
Sr. Maria, Sr. Miriam, Sr. Mary Giuse, Sr. Mary Jeremiah, and Sr. Marie Augustine–ready to play games!
Sr. Maria Cabrini, Sr. Bernadette Marie, Sr. Mary Margaret, and Sr. Carmen Gloria–another team for games
Spending some free time working a puzz
Michelle and Sr. Mary Pauline with the novitiate turtles, Jerome and Anthony
At the end of the day, we had our May procession (inside, because of the rain), singing the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
One more picture! The novitiate honored their directress with a lovely card and two plants.
It was a beautiful day, filled with many thoughts of Our Lord’s ascension into Heaven, and many prayers for all out mothers (and those who have been like mothers to us), both living and deceased. We keep all of you in prayer as we continue our May devotions this month!
Father Gavin Vaverek, pastor of Our Lady of Victory parish in Paris, TX, recently came and gave us a class on Lent. Father gives us classes on a variety of topics whenever he has time, and we always enjoy his great presentations and his witty remarks. In this class, Father encouraged us to “begin with the end in mind” when it comes to Lent, looking forward to the Triduum and Easter. He covered the main aspects of Lent–prayer, fasting, and almsgiving–encouraging us to use Lent as a time to grow in our Christian life and to keep up our good Lenten habits through Easter and beyond. Most of all, Father reminded us, Lent is a opportunity to grow in love and to share in the life of Christ. We had heard some of this before, of course–but it was a wonderful help to renew us in our Lenten practices, which can become mere form if we are not careful. And we can always learn something new about the spiritual life! Thank you, Fr. Gavin, for taking time out of your busy parish schedule and making the long trip from Paris (Texas, that is) to Lufkin! You are always welcome!
The community listens attentively to Fr. Gavin’s presentation. He’s a wonderful lecturer!
Recently, we were delighted to welcome Sr. Mary Ann from our monastery in Trinidad for a short visit. During her stay with us, we celebrated her 60th jubilee–again! She had a big celebration in Trinidad this past fall, but a 60th jubilee is worth celebrating more than once.
Sr. Mary Ann renewing her vows.
Taking the gifts up to Fr. R.B.Williams, O.P., our chaplain.
Big smile for the camera!
Fr. R.B. celebrating Mass, assisted by Deacon Jesus Reyes. Check out our beautiful tree and creche!
Receiving a blessing from Fr. R.B. at the end of Mass.
Posing in the hallway after Mass.
We have had a long and beautiful relationship with the Dominican monastery in Trinidad, which has only become closer as the two nuns left there have “joined” our monastery. They will remain in their own country, but we will be giving our assistance and help as needed. We thank God for His ever-providential care of us!
Dominican Life on Lotus Lane 