b'CONVERSATION BUILDS Our storytelling was structured around questionsNearly 50 brothers from across the United States attended the RELATIONSHIP, UNDERSTANDINGthat would lead us from our vocation story, throughMarianists Senior Gathering Brother Stephen Glodek, SMwhy we have remained in the Society, our experienceson Sept. 23-25 at Marianist of the merger of four United States provinces, ourRetreat & Conference Center.If you eavesdrop on a gathering of the elders of a personal hopes for the future and our hopes for the religious community, youll probably hear lots offuture of the Province of the United States. Fourlaughing, as old friends embrace, far along the roadindividuals spoke to the large group on each of the that they have trodden together for many years. questions before we discussed the same questionsYoull hear singing and praying, celebrating thein small groups and then in the large assembly.God who has blessed our walking, perhaps a bitWe heard and shared the sometimes ordinary and slower and for some, a bit shaky. And youll hear asometimes strange paths by which God called us to lot of stories about the way things were. the Society of Mary. Then we plunged into the perhaps In those stories, youll hear lots of laughing, butmore difficult questions of why we remained in the youll also hear hesitant tears in the ways these storiesSociety: One speaker described perseverance as are told. In these stories, we miss the buildings thatcoming to grips with what the deepest inclinations of formed the structures of our lives, as they are nowour hearts have been through the years. A particularly gone. Mostly, we miss the people who shared ourpoignant and somewhat difficult experience was the love and our journey who are not with us today.telling of both the blessings and losses regarding our And if you persevere in your eavesdropping, youllpersonal lives and our former provinces. hear us speaking, like the Scriptures tell us about oldThen we spoke personally and corporately of theBrother Stephen Glodek, SMmen, the visions we see of the journey that will blesslegacy and the mission that we entrust to the next us in the days ahead.generation of U.S. Marianists. We stand hopeful and Your eavesdropping of our gathering would haveencourage our younger brothers. We stand ever open been richly rewarded, as those who participated into what support we can give them as they carry on, this gathering were blessed to attend.to assist in reinterpreting the Marianist mission to We decided that we would not have an outsideour times, and to re-entrust ourselves to Mary, Woman presenter telling us how to age gracefully. We haveof Pentecost, Bearer of the Risen Christ to our broken already aged gracefullyor not! We needed to and redeemed world.PLEASE HELP THE tell each other about our own stories at this point How good it was for us to be together and toMARIANISTS care for their senior brothers and in our Province. We were going to talk story, as talk story from our hearts to ourselves and thepriests. To donate, use the the Hawaiians say, a way of being together in con- next generation.enclosed envelope, visit versation that was connecting, relationship building,marianist.com/donate, and understanding of one another on a deeper level.Brother Stephen Glodek, SM, professed first vows in 1967. or call 1.800.348.4732.marianist.com/donate19'