On St Teresa of Jesus of the Andes’ meeting with the Carmel Andes to be accepted for admission

Seventy-six miles south of Santiago
austere, the Carmel Andes,
gates closed to the noisy world.

A prayerful prison to be with Christ
suffering for Him, spending years
toward a life in eternity and

praying for the reparation
of sinners caught in selfishness,
deaf to the voice of God.

Here on land where once
her grandfather’s hacienda
stood so proudly

Carmel teaches a different
way to look at deeds,
debts, and happiness.

Today Juanita Fernandez Solar
comes to visit a conclave of sisters
to decide if she is right for them

and they are right for her. Light flooded
the monastery as the sisters accepted
this joyful and holy soul before them.

The poverty and devotion of Los Andes–
precisely what Juanita, Child of Mary, desires
to honor her obligation to be a saint.