Doors
A major door for all of us was the “receiving station” door (the one next to the dish washing machine room.) Everything happened there. It was access for departure in the one car that we had. Of course, we didn’t drive; one of “the men” was entrusted with driving us to the few places we went.
In the days of Mother Monica, it became very necessary to be on time. I suspect that Mother Monica was made the superior with the intention of getting us in order. Just one area: you see, before Mother Monica, the time of leaving from the receiving station door was relative. Not so with Mother Monica. If you were not there when the car was supposed to leave, it left without you. Mother Monica also assigned seats in the car. Well, when all were in place, off you went in the big black car.
It was through the receiving station door that the laundry left. Our laundry was done on the big industrial machines at St. Mary Hospital. The laundry would take off on Monday morning and come back on Friday and there would be a major house movement as the laundry was all sorted out on the dining room tables and items (usually) returned to their rightful owners or as we were schooled to say, not OWNERS because everything was “TO MY USE.”
The good thing about this laundry service was that we would send things all over the Mercy Network. For instance, if I needed to send something to my sister at St. Gabriel’s, I would simply put her name, her convent with the words “via laundry,” leave it in the receiving station and it would be at its destination that very day.
St. Mary’s Hospital had a liking for us and very often sent scones or other goodies back to us via laundry. It was a great system AND a lot of postage was saved.
There were other doors of importance for us, for instance, the “school door.” That was the door near the present day Emmaus community. When we left in the morning or when we came back from high school teaching in the afternoon we would come in that door – never the front door! I don’t know if the school sisters who taught at OLA or St. Catherine’s used that door. I suspect they used the receiving station door because that would be closer to the school bus where “Frenchie” (Pat Kennefick) would be waiting to deliver his prizes to their respective school sites.
Into that school bus, along with our Burlingame elementary sisters went what we called, “The caravans.” The main meal was at noon, not at night. Each school would receive three containers of hot food for lunch: meat, potatoes (never pasta in those days) and veggies. Mercy High School sisters would also receive a caravan. The novices would prepare the caravans and often they got it mixed up. Perhaps the high school would get two meats and no veggies while St. Catherine’s would get two veggies and no meat.
Sometimes I would be sent to one of the schools to help out Sister M. de Chantal with piano teaching. When I would get on that school bus all eyes would be turned toward me and at least one sister would voice their concern: “Does the kitchen know you are coming?” Well, they wanted to make sure there would be enough food.
Another important door, of course, was the middle door in chapel. We arrived in chapel through that door. Sr. Jean Evans had every sister’s walk down pat. She would regale us with her mimes. She would imitate the walk of various sisters, and we would guess who it was. We were always correct because Jean did her mimicry very well.
Through this particular chapel door, we would exit as a group, genuflecting in twos and proceeding out the door to the dining room. We would be reciting the Magnificat or a psalm.
One time Sister M. Martin and Mother Thomasine were in the process of genuflecting as they were exiting from chapel and one of them fell, dragging the other down with her. They got in a fit of laughter that lasted until they arrived in the dining room. We only had “talk” for supper on occasion, but we got it that night!
Protective doors
When we started Mercy Center, intrusion became a major issue. A sister would be in her room and a Center guest would walk in, expecting to inhabit a room that had the same number as the one she was given when she arrived at reception. The numbers of the Convent bedrooms and the Center bedrooms were the same. It was easy for a person who had never been to the building to wander unknowingly over to the Convent side. Not good!
Jeff Snyder solved our problem by putting keypads on all doors that led to the Convent. I might have been the only one who resented this. For me, hospitality was the best thing we had to offer and locks presented another message. Totally wrong, Suzanne! Now I value these locked doors. I have not yet descended to that level of dementia where I can’t remember my code! When I do, there is an easy code. I won’t print it here because if I do – there goes our security.
Our Front Door
I forgot to mention such an important door – our front door! Until rather recently there were two doors, the storm door and the entrance door. Somewhere along the years the entrance door ceased to function right and so the storm door was refashioned to become the entrance door. And a handsome door it is!
It was through this door that we originally entered the convent. It was through this door that our parents came to visit on visiting Sunday. Now it is the door that welcomes about 18,000 people a year as they come to Mercy Center. It is the door that admits the “morning sitters” who come to pray at 6:30 A.M. and the Sunday Community who join us for Mass each Sunday. Indeed our front door has become a symbol of the welcome we want to extend to all.
Not to end this on a gloomy note but just to make it complete, this is the door through which we make our final exit when “our life is changed, not taken away.” We have the lovely custom of processing out of chapel, out the front door to stand and sing our final hymn of farewell. “For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies. For the love which from our birth over and around us lies. Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.”
Toolan Tales 