Hearts on fire, feet on the move. This is how Pope Francis describes the person on mission. They are like the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, confused and downcast. After they meet Jesus, their hearts are on fire and their feet hurries them to share the good news: Jesus is risen!
Hearts on fire, feet on the move. Our sisters’ hearts were burning 33 years ago when they decided to open a home care for small children. We were recent immigrants, still transitioning to a new culture and a new language. Yet, our religious vocation called us to serve. And so, with trust in God’s providence, we opened our childcare on the second floor of the old St. Agnes Convent.
Sisters Marciana and Juliana were the first teachers. They sang, fed, and played with the little ones. Their feet were on the move. The children’s feet were definitely on the move. The childcare began with five children. It slowly grew to 10 children. The grace of God and the missionary spirit of the sisters kept parents knocking at their doors and children clamoring for the sisters’ hugs and fried rice. And so, the waitlist became longer and longer. It was time for a move.
It moved from two carpeted rooms under 400 square feet to a brand-new facility over 3,000 square feet. Our new daycare wasn’t just a daycare. It provided a place of ministry for the young sisters in formation as they learned to balance prayer, community life, and apostolic service. It spawned laughter and tears at the dinner table as the sisters shared anecdotes of the children’s antics.
Most importantly, as we watched the little ones and laughed at how they were so “caught up and insistent” in wanting a certain toy or snack, we realized we are not so much different from them. We get caught up in our works and projects. We become demanding of how things should be. In reality, in God’s eyes, we are all His small children. The daycare became a tangible reminder of our spirituality, evangelical spiritual childhood. That the key to timeless joy is to become little. To entrust all in God’s merciful Heart. And so, our hearts are enkindled with love and our feet are on the move,
ready to share our faith and the reason of our hope.
A brief look at the Queen of Angels Daycare Center in the past 33 years.
(Click on the pictures below to expand. )
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