A Religious Vocation Blooms on the Prairies
Sr. Anne Wanner, S.C.I.C.

II was born in Big Sky Country - South Saskatchewan - at a time when no rain fell and the sun often disappeared behind clouds of dust or grasshoppers. Living on a farm, we were never really hungry, but otherwise we were as poor as church mice. I'm sure this situation influenced my sense of values, especially in regard to material things.

My parents may have believed in things being cheaper by the dozen, because that is the number of children they had. I came along after five boys and only one girl, so they were quite pleased to see me. We all went to a one-roomed public school, and had a half-hour of catechism each day after the non-Catholic kids had been dismissed.

My spiritual journey began at my Baptism at the age of twenty days, and was fostered by parents who were both devout Catholics. Prayer was part of the day – prayer before meals, before bedtime, and for my parents the added rosary at their bedside. During Lent it was family rosary, and my parents overlooked the scramble for chairs to lean on during this lengthy penance.

We lived across the road from the church, so off we went every Sunday, rain or shine, or sub-zero weather that nipped cheeks and noses that were not bundled up warmly. Going to Communion meant going to Confession first, as well as fasting from midnight on. Altar boys keeling over was not too uncommon! Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, or the Stations of the Cross often meant another trip to the church in the afternoon. Forty Hours Devotion ended with a procession around the churchyard with us little girls having the exciting part of wearing white dresses and scattering baskets of flowers before the Blessed Sacrament.

Besides our religious instructions in school, we children received correspondence lessons from the Sisters of Service in Regina. These were faithfully done, supervised by Mom and sent in promptly. In July each summer we had two weeks of what we called Summer School. Boys and girls from far and wide were brought for two weeks of camping, in tents for the boys and the rectory verandah for the girls. On nights when the thunder rolled and rain soaked the tents, the boys grabbed a blanket and made a bee-line for the hay loft in our big red barn.

The summer culminated in white-garbed children making their First Holy Communion after having been well instructed by four Sisters and a Seminarian from Regina, and by the Bishop administering Confirmation to the older children. It was definitely the highlight of the summer. During one particular summer the accidental drowning of my fourteen year old brother made a lasting impact on me, and probably gave me something of a spiritual awakening.

My persistent daydream during these years was of walking up and down the aisles of a classroom, dressed in the long, black habit of a Sister teaching and helping children. This dream stayed with me for many years until it was "put on the back burner" by a tall, blond young

man who added another possibility to think about. Eventually it seemed that I would be joining the ranks of my married siblings. However, God had other plans.

My friend moved away and in time correspondence dwindled and we both knew that we should just be good friends.

Feeling relieved and free again, the old convictions resurfaced and I became very interested in the spiritual books and lives of the Saints in our pastor's library. My daily prayers at this time always included a special one for the grace of a religious vocation, as well as the courage and means to follow it. One answer to my prayers came in the form of my Confessor's question:"Anne, what are you planning to do with your life?" I said I was thinking of going to live with my sister in Vancouver, find a job for a while, and after that I'd like to enter the Sisters of Charity of the Immaculate Conception who, seemed to embody everything I dreamed of becoming. Father wisely pointed out that going to work would probably mean forgetting about a religious vocation, and offered to arrange an interview with the Sisters. Job-hunting was promptly forgotten - at last I was on the way to follow my dream!

To make a long story short, the Sisters liked me and I liked them, and after a long train ride a few weeks later I arrived at Vincent's Novitiate in Saint John, NB, on Feb 2, 1947. A year and a half later my group of novices and I made our first Profession of Vows, and three years later final Profession for life. In between times I finished high school and got my Teacher's License.

Spiritual growth through the years came through daily Mass and sacraments, prayer, meditation and spiritual reading, conferences by the dozens, Scripture study and faith sharing, the nourishment of good homilies at Mass, plus retreats, especially the annual week's retreat that is a cherished tradition for SCIC’s. Our work and everything that happens in our daily lives can be a means of following God's call. To this day my life has been largely happy and fulfilling and I shall always be grateful for the grace of a religious vocation.


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