A Week of Hope

Sister Meg Kymes, D.C., shares about the Provincial Assembly for the Province of St. Louise-USA.

Earlier this summer I had the opportunity to gather with more than 270 of my Sisters in St. Louis for my first Provincial Assembly. We all gathered for a week to discern what direction our Province as well as the worldwide Daughters of Charity community needed to focus on for the next six years. We spent time in reflection and prayer to help us be more open to the Holy Spirit's voice among us.

Coming to this Assembly, many of my Sisters had been through a very difficult time. The community had just closed multiple missions this year. We were able to celebrate all that has been accomplished at those missions and lift up in prayer our partners in mission and the poor we had served whom we left behind, being able to lift up our losses to the Lord and allow His presence to heal those wounds. After letting go of our losses, we were able to look at the future of our Province.

As I journeyed through this meeting with my Sisters, I knew the Holy Spirit was with us. Our shared insights were honest and personal while remaining focused on the greater good of our community. We were able to reflect on what was the core of our identity and build that into our ideas for our future. Even in times of relaxation and meals together, there was a sense of joy in being with each other. We were able to enjoy time with old friends while building new friendships with Sisters we did not know as well. The whole experience of our Provincial Assembly brought me back to why I became a Daughter of Charity and gave me great hope for the future of our community.