Silent witness to the charism
When you think no one sees you, read this moving tribute to the Daughters of Charity who migrate each year to Christ the King Retreat House in Syracuse. The author of this reflective poetry is a long time staff member at the retreat house. (I suspect the same could be said of other followers of Vincent and Louise.)
Beauty is in the Eye of the Beloved
Another year has come and gone, and the Retreat House is full of life again –
The Daughters of Charity are here!
It is so good to see familiar faces,
And those radiant smiles
And heartfelt benedictions.
None of us have escaped another year of time,
Yet each face grows more beautiful with each passing day.
For the faces of the Daughters glow with wisdom,
And their eyes reflect the love of the Savior.
We see them gracefully walking down the ahllo,
And tenderly opening the Chapel door
To meet their Lord within.
Look at their faces –
See the peace than can only come from knowing God,
And embracing His love.
Look closely – what do you see?
Wisdom, serenity, hope, faith, obedience, and sometimes pain.
Yes, pain and sadness is there, too –
For each Daughter carries the pain of those whose lives she has touched.
She is moved by what others have experienced,
And she carries their hurt with her, as she lifts them up in prayer.
It is so easy to say, “I’ll be praying for you.”
But when a daughter tells you that you are in her prayers,
You can rest your head on the pillow at night and know that someone has prayed for you today.
Look again at those faces –
Some show signs of the passage of years,
But the line are there from years of smiling.
And the sparkle in their eyes is the light of perpetual youth.
See them gather together in prayer,
And you will see faces that come alive,
Faces that are radiant with joy,
Eyes that see beyond the walls and the woes,
Eyes that are focused on God alone.
Gentle souls, one and all.
Tender, caring, merciful,
Each caring more for the other than for themselves.
Not one of them would accept any praise for who they are or what they do,
Each sees herself as a simple servant,
Doing only what she has been bidden to do.
Yet their walk shows us the path we each should choose to follow.
They preach the Gospel by their lives,
And reach out in love to each soul they meet.
Grace, wisdom and tenderness.
See the Daughters as they pass through each day,
Doing those “little things’ that bring peace and joy to others,
Trying moment to moment to grow in love and virtue.
We see each face and behold the beauty
That comes from deep within.
The beauty which that comes from years of caring,
Years of divesting oneself of self
And embracing all that is good and holy.
We share their lives for just a little time,
But they bring us joy and peace while they are here.
Our walk is brighter when we follow the Daughters’ path,
And our hearts are lighter.
They walk as women who know they are loved by the Father,
We can see Him in their eyes.
And we , too, feel His presence when we are with them.
Their beauty is real, and vibrant, and timeless,
For each face shows forth the goodness that is within,
And each smile bring us joy.
Soon the daughters will leave,
And return from these moments of silence
To their lives of loving service.
But they will live in our hearts,
For we have beheld their beauty,
And have been filled with their love.
and none of us will ever be quite the same.
Anne Richter, Associate, Christ the King Retreat House, Syracuse, NY
Tags: Daughters of Charity, tribute
A postscript from the author… Thank you so much for sharing it, Father. And thanks a million for posting the piece about the Daughters. May it bring encouragement to all the Daughters and Vincentians that read it. As could have been predicted, every Daughter who mentioned the piece stated categorically that it wasn’t describing them! What an irony – folks spend their whole lives looking for fame and acclamation and it’s never enough for their egos. And then there are the Daughters, who believe any words of praise are totally undeserved. They do not know see themselves as others see them – and that is part of their greatness. To God be the Glory! Anne Richter shared this earlier impression of the Daughters on retreat… If there are images in this attachment, they will not be displayed. Download the original attachment Stillness Within Early Morning . . . All is peaceful and quiet. The corridors are deserted. The only sound is a cardinal officially greeting the dawn. To the uninitiated, it would seem that the House is asleep. But the Daughters are about, even in the first light of day. The Chapel is dark, but even in the dim light the silhouette of faces gazing at the Blessed Sacrament can be seen. And the Daughters can be seen walking, slowly, along the garden path, Each walking alone, deep in prayer, Separate from each other, as they offer silent praise to God, Living Beads on a continuous Rosary. Yesterday was anything but silent. While the Daughters passed the day in silence, Others were here for less contemplative activities (But centered on God, nonetheless). The Daughters retreated to their own quiet place, And continued to meditate – still, even though silence was interrupted for a time. When God dwells within, peace can always be found, And no one is more aware of that than the Daughters. Silence rules for this week, But charity always prevails in a Daughter’s heart. The Daughters are silent, But they sense when a word spoken Will bring joy to another. Somehow they all knew that a Baptism was taking place, And rejoiced that a new soul was brought into the family of God. Somehow they knew of the young man who lives here, spending all his time studying, And they prayed for him during the Liturgy. They did not know that another young man who is at the House for the summer had never met a Sister. His first face-to-face encounter was with a Daughter of Charity, this week. And now he smiles broadly when he speaks of his first conversation “with a real Sister.” His first impression was a positive one, one that will last a lifetime. More than one Daughter mentioned the Deacons, And rejoiced that so many men were in formation, Many with their wives at their sides. One other group shared the House with the Daughters. And a gentleman in that group commented that the day had brought many blessings. He was deeply moved from having spent the day here; He felt the peace, as did the entire group. One can’t but imagine it was because one of the Daughters was praying for this group. Because that is what the Daughters do. Perhaps it was a test of patience, A testing to see if that inner calm could be broken, But as the day was drawing nearer to its end Even the most remote place of solitude Burst forth with the shrillness of blaring alarm and flashing strobe lights. As smoke filled the hallway the Daughters quickened their pace. Contemplation turned to leadership and action, And concern for each other. Even while making their way quietly to the downstairs exit, The Daughters made sure that everyone had responded to the alarm. Each room was quickly checked, And then each bedroom door was closed, As we all learned to do during early childhood drills. The youngest and the healthiest Unobtrusively made sure all were making their way to safety. Firemen with air tanks, and huge fire axes, The circle filled with fire trucks and flashing lights. Everyone chattering, sharing observations and rumors, Conjectures and reactions. Everyone but the Daughters, Who waited patiently for this latest interruption to pass. There is no way of knowing, But those brave men who came ready to fight a fire Most likely left here feeling blessed, exhilarated and joyful. They will never know how many prayers were offered for them By the Daughters, Patiently waiting in silence. Whether in silence or in the midst of relative confusion The Daughters dwell in the inner quiet which is borne of faith in the living Lord. His Spirit rests within them and gives them peace. As the old Quaker hymn reminds us, “No storm can shake my inmost calm, while to that Rock I’m clinging; Since love is Lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?” Or, as one of the Daughters said, during the stillness of an early Sunday morning, “Peace is within.” Peace be to you, Daughter, our sister in the faith. Some in your order have the title of Sister Servant, But each of you lives that title, And shows us that better way that you have chosen to live. I experience Anne Richter’s beautiful sentiments every day as public relations specialist for the Daughters of Charity, Province of the West. I have never worked for such an incredibly talented, mission-driven, loving group of people before. Each Daughter of Charity brings a very special spirit to this earth. They are blessed and those of us who have the honor of working with them are also blessed.3 Comments
Anne, thank you for translating our thoughts into words.
Patricia Smith
A postscript from the author…
Thank you so much for sharing it, Father. And thanks a million for posting the piece about the Daughters. May it bring encouragement to all the Daughters and Vincentians that read it.
As could have been predicted, every Daughter who mentioned the piece stated categorically that it wasn’t describing them! What an irony – folks spend their whole lives looking for fame and acclamation and it’s never enough for their egos. And then there are the Daughters, who believe any words of praise are totally undeserved. They do not know see themselves as others see them – and that is part of their greatness.
To God be the Glory!
Anne Richter shared this earlier impression of the Daughters on retreat…
If there are images in this attachment, they will not be displayed. Download the original attachment
Stillness Within
Early Morning . . .
All is peaceful and quiet.
The corridors are deserted.
The only sound is a cardinal officially greeting the dawn.
To the uninitiated, it would seem that the House is asleep.
But the Daughters are about, even in the first light of day.
The Chapel is dark, but even in the dim light the silhouette of faces gazing at the Blessed Sacrament can be seen.
And the Daughters can be seen walking, slowly, along the garden path,
Each walking alone, deep in prayer,
Separate from each other, as they offer silent praise to God,
Living Beads on a continuous Rosary.
Yesterday was anything but silent.
While the Daughters passed the day in silence,
Others were here for less contemplative activities
(But centered on God, nonetheless).
The Daughters retreated to their own quiet place,
And continued to meditate – still, even though silence was interrupted for a time.
When God dwells within, peace can always be found,
And no one is more aware of that than the Daughters.
Silence rules for this week,
But charity always prevails in a Daughter’s heart.
The Daughters are silent,
But they sense when a word spoken
Will bring joy to another.
Somehow they all knew that a Baptism was taking place,
And rejoiced that a new soul was brought into the family of God.
Somehow they knew of the young man who lives here, spending all his time studying,
And they prayed for him during the Liturgy.
They did not know that another young man who is at the House for the summer had never met a Sister.
His first face-to-face encounter was with a Daughter of Charity, this week.
And now he smiles broadly when he speaks of his first conversation “with a real Sister.”
His first impression was a positive one, one that will last a lifetime.
More than one Daughter mentioned the Deacons,
And rejoiced that so many men were in formation,
Many with their wives at their sides.
One other group shared the House with the Daughters.
And a gentleman in that group commented that the day had brought many blessings.
He was deeply moved from having spent the day here;
He felt the peace, as did the entire group.
One can’t but imagine it was because one of the Daughters was praying for this group.
Because that is what the Daughters do.
Perhaps it was a test of patience,
A testing to see if that inner calm could be broken,
But as the day was drawing nearer to its end
Even the most remote place of solitude
Burst forth with the shrillness of blaring alarm and flashing strobe lights.
As smoke filled the hallway the Daughters quickened their pace.
Contemplation turned to leadership and action,
And concern for each other.
Even while making their way quietly to the downstairs exit,
The Daughters made sure that everyone had responded to the alarm.
Each room was quickly checked,
And then each bedroom door was closed,
As we all learned to do during early childhood drills.
The youngest and the healthiest
Unobtrusively made sure all were making their way to safety.
Firemen with air tanks, and huge fire axes,
The circle filled with fire trucks and flashing lights.
Everyone chattering, sharing observations and rumors,
Conjectures and reactions.
Everyone but the Daughters,
Who waited patiently for this latest interruption to pass.
There is no way of knowing,
But those brave men who came ready to fight a fire
Most likely left here feeling blessed, exhilarated and joyful.
They will never know how many prayers were offered for them
By the Daughters,
Patiently waiting in silence.
Whether in silence or in the midst of relative confusion
The Daughters dwell in the inner quiet which is borne of faith in the living Lord.
His Spirit rests within them and gives them peace.
As the old Quaker hymn reminds us,
“No storm can shake my inmost calm, while to that Rock I’m clinging;
Since love is Lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?”
Or, as one of the Daughters said, during the stillness of an early Sunday morning,
“Peace is within.”
Peace be to you, Daughter, our sister in the faith.
Some in your order have the title of Sister Servant,
But each of you lives that title,
And shows us that better way that you have chosen to live.
I experience Anne Richter’s beautiful sentiments every day as public relations specialist for the Daughters of Charity, Province of the West. I have never worked for such an incredibly talented, mission-driven, loving group of people before. Each Daughter of Charity brings a very special spirit to this earth. They are blessed and those of us who have the honor of working with them are also blessed.
Anne, thank you for translating our thoughts into words.
Patricia Smith