Jennifer Wilson

Hospitality as part of my charism is my way and the sisters' way of living out the gospel. It is my way of being in the world. This is for me the easy part. What becomes more difficult is to let myself be welcomed.

Horizons - Easter is about transformation. The world needs it, and we need it. Showing up for each other transforms us and others. 

Horizons - The scary part of yes is that it is a leap of faith; you really have no idea what God will do with your yes. Will it lead to something else, to a closed door, or to something completely different?

Horizons - I am surprised by the encounter whenever I risk inviting and truly seeing the other. Doing this is one more way to welcome Jesus into my life. 

Horizons - I usually have a clear plan in my mind of how a journey is going to go. But I can't say that any journey of significance that I have taken has gone how I had planned or envisioned it.

As a Sister of Mercy, I listen to where God is leading my life, and I pay attention to where God is in the people I meet. This leads to the deep joy I have when I say I love my life as a sister.

Horizons - Religious women take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. I recently heard a sister say that the vow of obedience is the "listening" vow, and I found myself reflecting on this.

I like to say there is always a Sister of Mercy somewhere causing trouble. By this, I mean that one of us is out there advocating for God's people in some way.

Each day, think about a moment you know you are loved by God. You might find that it brings a few minutes of peace and reflection to an otherwise busy and sometimes chaotic day.

The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic revealed the ways people and experiences act as parachutes in our physical, mental and spiritual lives.

What do the words "no room for you" sound and look like to people often not welcome in society? Do people who are often left out hear words of welcome that are not really welcoming? Do they hear voices that say, "Come in," but know they are not really wanted? 

Horizons: My classes watched a documentary about immigrant students who were in high school. They were from different countries with different circumstances regarding their legal status. After watching the film, my students had some questions.

Horizons - I took a break to shake off burnout from being in the classroom during COVID-19. In Alaska, I watched salmon swim upriver. I saw hundreds try to swim up a waterfall. The approaching school year turns my thoughts back to those fish.

Horizons - "It's scary to give up what we know, but the abyss is where newness lives." These words jumped out at me as I read Margaret Wheatley's 2002 book Turning to One Another. The words seem like they were made for today.

Horizons - Yes, it is OK to recognize the feeling of languishing, and it might be a good idea to start to see if there is a way for other feelings to emerge. Name it and move on to something other than languishing.

Horizons - I am beginning to imagine my life after the pandemic as a merging of both worlds, of some things from before and some things different. Do any of us really want to go back to our frenzied busy lives without time and space to just be?

Horizons - On the day after the chaos at the Capitol, I was not in the mood to try to find hope. I was standing in my classroom trying to get it together, to welcome the teens about to walk in the door.

Horizons - Each one of us will have learned lessons and changed during this time. What are the lessons you want to remember and implement into life after the pandemic?

Horizons - My vow of chastity makes it possible to love God and others in what is the best way possible for me — and I am grateful to have Massa, Isaiah and several other amazing kids in my life.

Horizons - The pandemic continues to unfold, and recent protests against racism are increasing. But I continue to find glimmers of hope in both scenarios, in part because I was able to continue to teach theology to my high school students online.