The transfer to Reno Carmel was supposed to be for one year…it lasted her lifetime.
On the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Monastery, Sister Michael wrote:
“As Divine Providence would have it, ‘the nun who came to dinner’ has stayed for 49 years. The years have held much grace, countless blessings and many wonderful friendships for which I thank God daily. I hold in my heart and prayer all those faithful friends who helped to make our monastery on the hill a reality and whose assistance enables us to remain a permanent part of the Church in Nevada.”
Sr. Michael was a model of wisdom, deep holiness and a refreshing sense of humor.
Under her leadership, we transitioned from a traditional cloistered community into the Carmel of Reno you know today.
Her early years in the monastery coincided with the Second Vatican Council. Guided by its principles, Sr. Michael lifted its spirituality into the 20th century.
In the Carmel of the 1950s and 60s. it was a novel experiment to have work that supported the monastery.
Sister Michael created our early Print Shop and led the effort to consolidate our other works of the time (stuffing envelopes, Vestments, Communion Hosts) into the single work of printing.
This led to the conversion of the monastery basement into a viable working space with Offset Presses, an Industrial Cutter and a Darkroom.
Concurrent with this project, she oversaw the 1970 renovation of the Monastery Chapel into a more inclusive space where people outside the monastery might join us for worship.
It was also novel at that time to emphasize education, but Michael created our library and over a 20-year period had the vision to bring endless scholars from all over the world from the USF Summer School of Theology to the monastery for lectures.
Sister Michael was essentially an artist and remained active through her life designing cards, silk-screening originals and in later life crafting vases.
Two of our best-selling cards are her designs:
Moments of Joy: “In moments of joy…all of us wish we possessed…a tail we could wag!”
and
Jonah: “If I should pass the Tomb of Jonah/I think I would stop there and sit for awhile/because I was swallowed once deep in the dark and came out.. ALIVE AFTER ALL…..”
The list of her achievements pales beside the spirit of kindness she breathed into the monastery which became a way of life for us all. She always wore her deep knowledge of the classics with a spirit of whimsy.
“We are building a community of love. Unless we are a community, we can’t contribute to the Church.. and unless we love one another we can’t be a community.” -Sister Michael, 1967
In her 90s, Sr. Michael offered the following reflection on the contemplative life:
“Our vocation is to stand before God on behalf of everyone, no matter who. And when I look out the windows [of the chapel] sometimes, I just think ‘everyone.’ It goes beyond us and beyond the city. We’re here for others. We’re at the service of everyone. It’s sort of a hidden kind of a thing. And if people appreciate it and know about it, that’s fine. But if they don’t, it’s still an energy that goes out, and we are part of the whole world. St. Teresa would say ‘the whole world is in flames’ and we want to do something about it. And our ‘doing something about it’ is our prayer life and our trying to think of others, being ourselves, and trying to put that energy of prayer out there, where it is needed. It’s bigger than we are. And it’s hard to put into words.” -Sister Michael, circa 2018