Monastery in My Heart – A Poem
By Mary Rose Kreger, republished from her shared blog Monastery in My Heart. Eight years ago, I was a young novice, Sr. Mary Inez. I spent 19 months in the convent before realizing I was called to a married vocation. Today I am a happy wife and mom, but re-entering...
Shedding the Habit
By Jamie, reposted from her blog Bloom Where You're Planted. I sat in my first job interview after leaving the convent. I remember clearly being asked, “What’s your five year plan?” by the financial lead of the organization. I mean this was a typical job interview...
Failure and a Life Well-Lived
By Theodosia Burress Prior to religious life, I didn’t have much interest in fantasy books besides The Chronicles of Narnia series and The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Since returning to lay life, (as a result of recommendations), I’ve read many books in this genre....
“So, Why’d You Leave?”
By Jamie, re-published from her blog Bloom Where You're Planted. It's now been about two and a half years since I left my monastery. Yes, it's still my monastery and my sisters, but now is the time to share the rest of the story. I had been in the cloister for one...
Leonie’s Longing Intern: Meet Abbie Anne!
Hi everyone! My name is Abbie Anne Truesdell and I am the new summer intern at Leonie’s Longing. I am currently a student (senior) at Clemson University in South Carolina. My major is in Psychology, while my minor is in Non-Profit Leadership. While I am greatly...
Leaving, Take 2
12 lessons I learnt from my first leaving, that made my second so much easier. By Catherine. When I was twenty, I was set for life. I was a happy and confident young woman excited to begin my postulancy in an active religious order. Fast forward to twenty-one, and it...
Finding Freedom in Forgiveness
By Christina M. Sorrentino “He who knows how to forgive prepares for himself many graces from God. As often as I look upon the cross, so often will I forgive with all my heart." (St. Faustina, Diary, 390) Forgiveness is a tremendous challenge when it often seems that...
10 Tips for Taking the Online Dating Plunge
By Cate. Do you find yourself ready to start dating and yet limited by the lack of social activities these days? (Thank you, Lord, for paradoxically opening my heart to marriage in the midst of a global pandemic!) Or maybe you’ve found the local Catholic dating scene...
All Things New: Rediscovering the Word of God Post-Convent
By LumenChristi I was on a very difficult discernment visit with a community, when a priest in confession assigned me to pray Psalm 23 as my penance. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. . .” As a 22-year old cradle Catholic, the words were so familiar that...
Riding into the Wind
By Windy Day. A few years ago I went for a surprising bike ride. It was a sunny and beautiful day and I set off recognizing that it was a bit breezy. My hat was slightly blowing around but I didn't think about the direction of the wind. I thought I'd go for a 20...
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