60 YEARS OF PAULINE ADVENTURE
permission. We received letters from home only once a month. But the formator(sister in charge of formation) read it first and then handed it over to you but you must pretend to ask her to read it for you after which you can read it for yourself and tell her all the news inside.
We slept together in a big dormitory without any curtains to screen your bed from the next one. Often they discourage us from talking about personal matters or about our families. The reason is that we must learn to detach ourselves from the world so that we could dedicate
After one and a half years of formation, an unusual incident happened. The sisters received a free airline ticket from Manila to Frankfurt. Since none of the Italian missionary sisters were due for home-leave, they thought of sending me to Rome for my formation. Since the ticket was for Frankfurt, the sisters bought me another ticket, Frankfurt – Rome, so that I could land in Rome.
Was it that easy to land in Rome? It took me another big adventure to do that.
To be continued …
A few days ago, it struck me that I have been a Pauline sister for 60 years.
How has the time passed so fast?
I closed my eyes and there came the image of a fashionable young lady, they told me I was pretty! In fact, I never wanted to become a nun, and I naturally acted as a young lady of the time.
Suddenly the Lord paid me an
The first adventure was having to leave my country of Singapore to enter in the Daughters of St Paul in Manila, Philippines. I was 24 years when I entered, and I had been a qualified teacher for four years before I joined the congregation.
Life in the convent was very strange. And our Filipino community was quite poor at that time. Rules were very strict and there was hardly any personal freedom. During meals we were just given a portion, whether you are a small or big eater, you got the same amount of food, without any choice. I had to eat four rolls of bread which I could hardly finish. Those of us who had problems eating so much bread, used to play tricks on our neighbours. We would try to transfer some of our rolls on to our neighbour’s plate.
urgent call, and told me to follow Him. I had to obey as the Lord seemed to cut me off from other options. But once I said Yes to the Lord, I never regretted my choice. And the Lord has shown me how loving and generous he has been to me all these years.
When I had my first laundry turn, I did not know how to wash clothes by hand. At home I never did any washing of clothes. In my fervour, I grabbed the dress and rubbed vigorously to make it clean, but my hands became sore andred.
And I also never did any cooking. My father was an expert cook and he did all the cooking. We kids only did the washing up of plates. My first attempt was disastrous. When it was time for lunch, I was still a long way off. They told me, serve whatever you have cooked for now and forget the rest.
In the days of my formation in the 1960s, there was no personal freedom and privacy. Whatever you want to do or wherever you wish to go, you have to ask
“I am the way and the truth and the life” John 14:6
「我是道路、真理、生命」若14:6
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