Casting My Lot

On January 7th, I made my vows for the first time. Some of my family was able to come to celebrate this next step with me. My mom's cousin, Mary Margaret, came to Emmitsburg from Kansas City for my celebration. After Mass, Mary Margaret came up to me and gave me a huge hug. With tears in her eyes, she said "I'm so proud of you! I've never seen so many joyful women in one place. I can see why you cast your lot with them."

In the weeks following my vows, Mary Margaret's words resonated with me. I thought of the Apostles leaving their nets to follow Jesus. The Gospel of Matthew tells us that, "Going on from there, [Jesus] saw two brothers, James the son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father, preparing their nets. Jesus called them and immediately they left the boat and their father to follow Him."

Like the Apostles, I chose to follow Jesus' call to me to leave my family of origin to "cast my lot" within the Daughters of Charity. I wanted to share the joy of Christ's presence in my life in a special way. In our vows, the Daughters pray, "In response to the call of Christ who invites me to follow Him and to be a witness to His charity of the poor, I ... vow to God, for one year, chastity, poverty, and obedience ... and to devote myself to the corporal and spiritual service of the poor."

Like all of the Apostles, I chose to cast my lot through God's call to me to be a witness with others to God's love. I chose to cast my lot with the example of the Sisters I live with, the Vincentian Saints and Blesseds, and the other smaller saints that have influenced my journey.

Written by Sister Meg Kymes, D.C.