As the future Sister Mary Michael Fox was poised to enter religious life, her mom said: “I don’t think you can do it.” Discover how Sister Mary Michael responded!
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Sister Rejane
This Random Nun Clip is brought to you by A Nun's Life Ministry. Hello, I am Sister Cytacki of A Nun's Life. And my guest today is Sister Mary Michael Fox, a Dominican Sister of St. Cecilia. Did your mom have to go through some prayer too? Because within the family, her expectation too was you would be the one that she'd spent her days with so well.
Sister Mary Michael
I don't know if it was that as much. Yes, my mother was devoutly religious. She loved the church, but again, we were close. She never she never talked about vocation in the house. She used to say, "I never thought I was worthy to have a vocation." It was one of the things she used to say, which was beautiful. I found out later that she went up to our parish priest, her confessor, and she, she gave them the what-for. And she says, "Can you believe it? She's going into the convent. And I don't know about this, Father." And he said to her, "Isabel, you have son-in-laws, right"? She goes, "Yes." And he said, "And I bet there was a few of them that maybe you like them sometimes, maybe you don't." And she got quiet, you know? And he said to her, "Isabel, you'll like this son-in-law." [laughter] She told me that story.
Sister Rejane
That's beautiful and brilliant. [laughter]
Sister Mary Michael
I will say this, though. She did say to me, when I did sit down and talk to her about it, "I'm not sure you can do it."
Sister Rejane
Because she knew you. Like moms do.
Sister Mary Michael
She knew me. And she knew what the life was about. More than I did, really. I just fell in love with Jesus. I didn't ask any questions. I didn't know really what I was in for. I just knew I loved Jesus. As a matter of fact, when I came home from the visit, my family was asking me all kinds of questions. And I kept saying, "I don't know. I don't know what I can come home again. I don't know when you can visit. I don't know when I can write." I didn't ask any of those questions, Sister. All I knew is that Jesus took my heart. So my mother said to me, "I'm not sure you can do it." And because I love my mother and respected her, I said to her, "Mom, I'm not sure I can do it either. But I know I need to go and give it a try." And that's what I went with, Sister. That's what I went with. I crossed the doors of the convent. And I knew each day, he had called me there. It's where he was, it's where my heart was, and all the other aspects of it -- as you know, because there's a lot of sacrifice. All the other aspects had to be given over each time to that.
Sister Rejane
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This transcript has been lightly edited for readability.
