Lost and Found

Lost and Found

In the film one of the women, at a very intense part, almost offered comic relief by telling a story of her beloved horses. Greta tells the story of driving in her buggy along a country road bounded by drainage ditches on both sides. Along the way there was an aggressive dog that scared the horses, who in the past had bolted and run into the ditches, upsetting the cart. So Greta learned that in order to keep control of her own fears, she had to not look to the left or the right but simply keep her eyes focused in the middle of the road and keep Ruth and Cheryl the horses going in that same direction. 

I understood this lesson well. When on my cross-country road trip and other bike tours I’d been in a similar situation: When traffic got intenseon Highway 101 (the Pacific Coast) or in the mountains of Norway on narrow roads without guardrails, where the sides sloped down precipitously. Any mistake and me and my bike could be at the bottom. I had to learn, despite my fears, to keep my eyes on the road ahead, to not get distracted by the burbling emotions within me, but to breathe deep and keep going. My fears didn’t go away; I just tucked them under and waited for them to subside, or for the situation to change—which they always did.

Also on my bike trips I was invariably lost. Especially in England—nothing lined up with my GPS or maps. Road signs were confusing. They drove on the “wrong” side and there were roundabouts. I was always glad on days I made progress and the rare occasions I wasn’t lost or as lost. The women in the film had limited knowledge of the region; they couldn’t read, and, thus, couldn’t use a map. They were hamstrung leaving—how would they know where to go or even where they were going? Leaving their colony meant leaving the only place they’d ever known. What if the earth was not round and they fell off the edge of the world? In this way they were like early voyagers, setting off on an unknown journey.

The uncertainty and fear could have held them back, but like Greta’s horses they decided not to look to the left or right or become indecisive, they held to their sense of purpose and packed up and left. Isn’t this the true definition of a seeker, a pilgrim? A new identity.

Just as Sister Corita forged a new name, now simply Corita, and her community formed a new one now called Immaculate Heart Community, and just like how I’ve found a new space and called it home while still retaining my sense of mission, we create new roles and identities for ourselves as we grow and pass through life milestones.

 

END of SERIES, Women Talking