Things really started moving in Kansas City the morning of Saturday, April 18th when the whole little family of Kansas City offered a “Grand Welcome” in the mall area. Gaby Garcia had been working with the Residents to teach them some Spanish, so the first word of greeting from the group was a hearty “Bienvenidas!” The rest of the presentation continued in Spanish and English, and Residents presented the visitors with flowers and welcome cards.
In the afternoon the joy of a Little Sister arriving in Kansas City was portrayed in the form of a puppet show, accompanied by the popular song “Kansas City, Here I Come.” Then came an introduction to the State of Missouri, which has more than 90,000 farms! A new group of puppets appeared, performing to the song “En la Granja de Tío Juan” (Old McDonald Had a Farm), and one of our volunteers dressed in a flowing outfit and holding a fan did a beautiful dance in front of the puppet stage. A Resident read the poem “The Grandeur of God” by Gerard Manley Hopkins while the participants in the next act got into costume. When they appeared we saw an employee and volunteer with a group of Resident “plants” and “trees” acting out a story entitled “The Garden”. None of the trees and flowers were happy with themselves and all wanted to be something else. That was, until they came to the smallest, the daisy, who said she was happy to be a small flower that could make someone smile. After hearing this the others in the garden realized that happiness is where we are and who we are. The show closed with a grand finale song “Cielito Lindo” led by a volunteer playing the guitar and with Resident Toni Medina on the microphone while we all sang along to the many “Ay, Ay Ay, Ay (s)”! The afternoon closed with a root beer float social in the mall, while Mère greeted the guests that had come to join us.
The first big news of the day on Monday the 20th was the announcement of the hatching of three goslings out by the pond. New life to start off the new day!
We had the joy of having Bishop James V. Johnson, Jr. celebrate Mass for us, along with our chaplain, Fr. Joseph Sharbel, and Resident priest Fr. James Hart.
