The Children of Notre Dame

Down the halls, up the staircases and through the wide doors of what was once Notre Dame Academy, there are is no longer the same laughter or the same tapping of black shoes with a symphony of voices talking over each other.  These sounds are quite different from the ones I am used to hearing. There is still laughter and there are still shoes but it is different.  The voices are a bit higher and the students a bit shorter.

      The grade school at what was once the boarding school of Notre Dame Academy has finally opened after our days teaching high school students ended.  Due to low enrollment and the Superior General in Montreal no longer requiring nuns for the public school setting, Notre Dame’s convent was emptied and the last of the previous high school students were sent to St. Josephs, another renowned boarding school in the Kankakee area, to finish their education.  However, a Catholic grade school was still an option and our Maternity of the BVM Elementary School was still a useful option.  So with the help of myself and my fellow sisters, the building opened once again for its educational value.  I hear it will only be for a short time before a new building is given to the students but it is wonderful to see the halls resurrect once more. 

      It was a shame to see the cobwebs form and the dust settle on the railings and podiums.  But now everything that was covered in dust is now speckled with curious fingerprints and the floors clatter with missing pencils.  Once again, I know and understand that it is only for a short time but this is not what I expected our Heavenly Father to provide.  Regardless of what any of us expected, it is mystifying to see the classrooms full, the desks no longer empty and hearing the eager shouts of learning children.  It feels like home as I gaze upon the next generation, up and coming from Kankakee.