by Nadia Ramoutar     MMM Communications Coordinator             17.10.2022

Not a week goes by that I don’t feel honoured to read the stories of our MMM Sisters at work in the missions.  Today, I have reviewed a large amount of stories about girls and women who are sex trafficked and traded.  It is hard to keep reading sometimes.   But, I know I am fortunate that my work as the Communications Coordinator brings me in to direct contact with how our MMM Sisters are spending their time making the world a better place for so many people.  For busy Sisters at work in the Mission report writing is part of their life and has to be fitted in between caring for other people.  I know this can’t be easy as they are tired and their time is in demand for other important work. I realise my ability to know these stories is a blessing.

When we receive reports of what is happening in the Missions, I often find myself in a state of mixed emotions:
Gratitude to the Sisters for their efforts and for taking their time to share the stories.  Overwhelmed, for some of the harsh conditions the Sisters are working in and for challenges facing the people who they seek to empower.  Admiration for the courage the Sisters show in the face of adversity coming to them in many forms often all at once.  Concern for how there is so much to be done for so many by so few.

Stress comes over me as I try to find ways to tell the Sisters stories to the Western world, far removed from such a harsh conditions.
Guilt hits me as I think of my lifestyle and how much I have already.  Anger often rises in me as I think of the children growing in such hardship because of the geography of their birth.  Anxiety hits me as I realise how much work we need to do within a budget and schedule.  Relief then reaches me as I realise I do not have to do this alone – I am part of a team here in my office, here in this Congregation and here in the world.

The swirling of emotions that comes from working with Missions probably explains why more people don’t do it because it is not for the faint hearted. One of the important traits I see in the MMM Sisters, over and over again, is resilience.

I lean into this awe I have for what does actually get done by the MMM Sisters and I think of how important it is for us to keep telling stories about the work. It is all about the work of sharing how important it is for us to care about people in the world who are most vulnerable.

We honour people by telling their stories and giving them an audience in the world through print media and digital media. People have the right to be heard and for others to know them even if they will never meet in person. A writer and poet I greatly admire who overcame great adversity in her life, Maya Angelou, once said: “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside of you.”

We have the honour of sharing the stories of girls and women who would never be known.  Those who have been sex trafficked or traded, those who have painful childbirths that cause them to lose their baby and have massive wounds, those who are starving and have no clean water for their families, and those who are struggling with unknown illnesses in need of care and a kind word from a compassionate person.  Our MMM Sisters are hearing these stories day after day and do what they can to elevate the physical, mental and spiritual pain that other people carry.  We are committed to do whatever we can to support them.  Thank you, for supporting us on this journey.  I am reminded of the phrase, “there is no them, only us.”