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I
am Anna Popiolek, a candidate of the province of Poland of the Society
of the Sacred Heart. I entered the Society after finishing my studies
in nursing at University. This year I live in the Community of
Philippine Duchesne in Warsaw-Ursynow.
I am getting to
know more about the Society, and its prayer life and I participate in
the apostolic service of the community. Since September 2004 I haveve
been working in a public hospital, in an department for cardiac and
other internal diseases, and as well as in the First Aid Center of St
Thomas? Parish in Warsaw-Ursynow.
Working in the Center I meet poor, homeless people, quite often with alcoholic problems. They
do not always come because of the wounds on their hands or legs or
health problems, but much more often because of the pain in their hearts. Health
problems are only excuse to visit our Center to find somebody who will
listen, who will discover a human being beyond many layers of dirty
clothes, beyond the addictions. A human being with his or her problems, sadness, joy, desires?
There
is a wealth of emotions in the people I meet. Sometimes with tears in
their eyes, they admit that they don?t have enough strength to cope
with addiction, with alcoholism. They are aware of the fact that this
addiction kills them. Those people want to find in me a person who
will not only take care of their broken noses or legs, but who will
comfort, encourage, sometimes say something , to question their way of
living, but who will not judge them, not condemn. This apostolic
commitment makes me to try to help them in medical issues but also just
to be with them, to listen to their stories.
I experience that giving a little of myself I am receiving a lot.
Anna Popiolek, Candidate
Province of Poland |
