The journey of those who discover they are loved
In the uncertain realm of choice, where doubts and desires, fears and callings intertwine, Sr Merina has followed a progressively unfolding path of awareness. Her story is that of a young woman who has learned to recognize God’s love through the real faces of people.
The roots of a vocation
As a child in her village, Sr. Merina admired the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate as they sang, played, and told stories. From those encounters, the desire to consecrate herself was born, a small seed that took time to mature, but which grew with her step by step.
After the completion of high school, she found herself at crossroads: religious life or marriage?
Sr. Shemoli guided her in her discernment toward the congregation. Upon entering, Merina didn’t yet have a clear idea of the mission, but simply experiencing it for the first few days was enough… and so she understood that “To be a missionary means leaving our homeland, leaving our family, going to another country, bearing witness to and proclaiming God.”
Wounds and supports
Her decision wasn’t welcomed by her entire family: “My mother and sister still don’t understand my choice,” she confides. However, she was never left alone to bear this suffering: other sisters supported her, helping her build bridges with her parents… and little by little, Sr. Merina learned to nurture this pain without letting it turn into bitterness.
This and other situations often led her to face doubts and fears, but with the guidance of her spiritual guides, she discovered that vocation is not a point of arrival, but a journey to be renewed every day… not a “Yes” said the first time and then a path downhill, but a “Yes” chosen daily, with joy and often with difficulty.
Thus, seven years after her entry, Merina acknowledges a profound transformation: “My outlook has also changed. Before, I wasn’t very aware of the “yes” I was saying. The first “yes” remained more in words; the “yes” I have now is a “yes” of everyday life, a “yes” forever.”
The “Yes” that transforms life
On the day of her perpetual profession, Merina thought of Mary’s “Yes”: “She said yes, even though she didn’t know what would happen. Yet, even under the cross, she maintained her yes.” A faithfulness, that transcends the incomprehensible.
“I said yes too, and I don’t know what my future will be… I’ve opened my life. As God wills, He will be with me. I just have to trust in Him.”
Precious in the eyes of God
As the image of her perpetual profession, Merina chose: “You are precious in my eyes” (Is 43:4). It sums up her journey. “So many times I wanted to escape, run away from God. But I never succeeded, because God loved me.”
And she also experienced this love through the people and sisters of the community, certain that the Holy Spirit was working through them. When she arrived, she says she didn’t know how to speak in front of people; it was difficult for her to break the ice… “Now I can speak freely, even in public; I feel more confident.”
These are God’s small faithfulnesses, the details through which he manifests himself with a love that accompanies growth.
Availability as a daily vocation
That same love she received became part of her calling: “I would always like to be available to others.” And she immediately adds, with disarming honesty: “Listening to others is sometimes difficult for me, I like to talk…” But this is precisely the heart of her mission: giving up her seat to an elderly person on the bus, being attentive to the needs of others, offering her time even when it costs sacrifice. The mission begins in everyday life, in the ordinary folds of existence… in the love poured into the small, ordinary things.
A message
To the young women, and to all those seeking their path, Sr Merina offers a clear testimony: “Religious missionary life is not easy, but it is not impossible. When you taste its flavor, you will feel joy, peace, the fullness of life, and Love.” Merina doesn’t promise ease, but fullness. “They must walk with courage and hope. Hope never disappoints.”
Her grandfather once told her, “Stay where you have gone with confidence, and do what God has sent you to do.” Her grandfather was Hindu, yet he gave her wise advice… as well as many blessings, which Marina remembers with fondness and gratitude.
Merina’s story is that of someone who navigated doubt without denying it, fear without masking it. And in that very process, she discovered her preciousness in God’s eyes. Her final yes isn’t the end of the journey, but the beginning of a new chapter.
