Mercy Center Hosts Retreats Throughout the Year
Mary Grace Donaldson
Issue date: 11/21/09 Section: Opinion
Saturday afternoon and evening we were treated to more presentations. Nicole Voci, a sophomore, gave a talk on being "caught in the rush, lost in the flow." I spoke about life experiences which tested my faith, as did Joel Beaulieu, a friend of Fr. von Maluski's outside of Salve who participated in the retreat with our group. The evening closed with the sacrament of Reconciliation, and an evening Mass.
Some of the best memories made on retreats came late at night, after the day's activities. A large portion of our group participated in a game of "Apples to Apples" that went on late into the night. After the game, my roommate, Claire Kilcommons, a freshman, and I were off to bed-or so we thought. We stayed up during the night telling life stories. The bonding friendships made on retreats are my favorite part of the retreat experience. There is potential to bond with someone who never knew before, or, in some cases, find out that you are in class with someone in the group.
Sunday morning, Mayer treated us to a talk of one of her life experiences. We were then led by Fr. von Maluski to a large zen garden, where each of us took a turn repairing the garden. For me, it represented the carrying of burdens and having a friend come to take our burdens off our hands. We closed the retreat by reading affirmations, "warm fuzzies" that we each wrote for each member of the group. Hence their name, the kind words that I received truly were affirmations that I made new friends and grew closer to old ones.
The retreat opened our group up to new challenges and allowed our faith to grow. "The retreat taught me how to listen again as sometimes we get caught up in the race that we forget to be sensitive to other people," said Beaulieu, 28, who resides in Tiverton, R.I.
The Mercy Center for Spiritual Life will be hosting another retreat at the end of February, which will also be held at Sacred Hearts Retreat Center. If it's anything like this retreat, it will be a wonderful experience.
Some of the best memories made on retreats came late at night, after the day's activities. A large portion of our group participated in a game of "Apples to Apples" that went on late into the night. After the game, my roommate, Claire Kilcommons, a freshman, and I were off to bed-or so we thought. We stayed up during the night telling life stories. The bonding friendships made on retreats are my favorite part of the retreat experience. There is potential to bond with someone who never knew before, or, in some cases, find out that you are in class with someone in the group.
Sunday morning, Mayer treated us to a talk of one of her life experiences. We were then led by Fr. von Maluski to a large zen garden, where each of us took a turn repairing the garden. For me, it represented the carrying of burdens and having a friend come to take our burdens off our hands. We closed the retreat by reading affirmations, "warm fuzzies" that we each wrote for each member of the group. Hence their name, the kind words that I received truly were affirmations that I made new friends and grew closer to old ones.
The retreat opened our group up to new challenges and allowed our faith to grow. "The retreat taught me how to listen again as sometimes we get caught up in the race that we forget to be sensitive to other people," said Beaulieu, 28, who resides in Tiverton, R.I.
The Mercy Center for Spiritual Life will be hosting another retreat at the end of February, which will also be held at Sacred Hearts Retreat Center. If it's anything like this retreat, it will be a wonderful experience.
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