Ideas For Gifts

[MissScripture]

All summer and all fall, there has been a Poor Clare Monastery that has been praying for me with all my heart troubles. I want to send them a gift to thank them for all of their prayers, but I am unsure what can a) be sent by mail and b) be something they could make use of. I don't really want to give them food, because I know they generally have a lot of food (they stopped gardening, because they were getting so many donations, they were unable to make use of it all!), plus that's not so easy to mail. (Although, I will be going home in a couple weeks, and they are only about 15 minutes from my parent's house, so I could bring them something else, then)

I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas of something more original, though. What do Monasteries need? What do they not get much of?

Thanks.

[sistersintigo]

[quote name='MissScripture' timestamp='1287858429' post='2181851']
All summer and all fall, there has been a Poor Clare Monastery that has been praying for me with all my heart troubles. I want to send them a gift to thank them for all of their prayers, but I am unsure what can a) be sent by mail and b) be something they could make use of. I don't really want to give them food, because I know they generally have a lot of food (they stopped gardening, because they were getting so many donations, they were unable to make use of it all!), plus that's not so easy to mail. (Although, I will be going home in a couple weeks, and they are only about 15 minutes from my parent's house, so I could bring them something else, then)

I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas of something more original, though. What do Monasteries need? What do they not get much of?

Thanks.
[/quote]
Which monastery is it? What city?

[MissScripture]

[quote name='sistersintigo' timestamp='1287858987' post='2181853']
Which monastery is it? What city?
[/quote]
St. Clare Monastery in Sauk Rapids, MN

[vee]

[quote name='MissScripture' timestamp='1287858429' post='2181851']


I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas of something more original, though. [b]What do Monasteries need? What do they not get much of? [/b]

Thanks.
[/quote]

[size="6"]Prayers!!!![/size] Send, or give them, a card notifying them of one or more Mass intentions for them. Spend some time in Adoration and notify them that X number of hours has been spent in Adoration for their intentions. My parish even has little cards you can fill out for just such a thing.

[DameAgnes]

[quote name='vee8' timestamp='1287863647' post='2181872']
[size="6"]Prayers!!!![/size] Send, or give them, a card notifying them of one or more Mass intentions for them. Spend some time in Adoration and notify them that X number of hours has been spent in Adoration for their intentions. My parish even has little cards you can fill out for just such a thing.
[/quote]

The Sauk Rapids Poor Clares are a marvelous community, but their house is rather old and drafty. I would bet they could use warm "underalls" (you know, those silk things) warm blankets, warm socks and slippers, or some help with their heating bill.

[TeresaBenedicta]

You could send them a roll of stamps-- I used to do that with a good friend of mine who entered the Poor Clares. They really appreciated those!

[CatherineM]

I ditto the stamps. That's the kind of thing that is great to send to elderly relatives. Maybe some really good hot chocolate.

[Chiquitunga]

[quote name='TeresaBenedicta' timestamp='1287887314' post='2181965']
You could send them a roll of stamps-- I used to do that with a good friend of mine who entered the Poor Clares. They really appreciated those!
[/quote]

Great idea!! And maybe you could send them a bunch of the new [url="https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10007018&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000003&top_category=10000003&categoryId=10000031&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=Y&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10007018"]Mother Teresa[/url] ones, and/or the [url="https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10006327&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000003&top_category=10000003&categoryId=10000031&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=Y&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10006327"]Christmas one[/url] with Jesus & Mary. My mom always buys a ton of those when they're available at our local post office so we can use them throughout the year. We still have some old ones from previous years too. Also there's an [url="https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10007046&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000003&top_category=10000003&categoryId=10000031&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=Y&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10007046"]angel one[/url] too. I'm sure they would really appreciate that, since maybe they don't get the chance to chose their own stamps/don't have the internet to order them online.

Great thinking, by the way, on not giving them food .. or at least sweets, [url="http://doihaveavocation.com/blog/archives/112"]http://doihaveavocat...og/archives/112[/url] I remembered reading this a while back when I saw your question here

[MissScripture]

[quote name='Chiquitunga' timestamp='1287892415' post='2181985']
Great idea!! And maybe you could send them a bunch of the new [url="https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10007018&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000003&top_category=10000003&categoryId=10000031&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=Y&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10007018"]Mother Teresa[/url] ones, and/or the [url="https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10006327&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000003&top_category=10000003&categoryId=10000031&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=Y&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10006327"]Christmas one[/url] with Jesus & Mary. My mom always buys a ton of those when they're available at our local post office so we can use them throughout the year. We still have some old ones from previous years too. Also there's an [url="https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10007046&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000003&top_category=10000003&categoryId=10000031&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=Y&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10007046"]angel one[/url] too. I'm sure they would really appreciate that, since maybe they don't get the chance to chose their own stamps/don't have the internet to order them online.

Great thinking, by the way, on not giving them food .. or at least sweets, [url="http://doihaveavocation.com/blog/archives/112"]http://doihaveavocat...og/archives/112[/url] I remembered reading this a while back when I saw your question here
[/quote]
Ooh! I hadn't thought of the Mother Teresa stamps! I usually get the forever stamps, just because then it doesn't matter if the price changes, but my husband laughed at me the last time I sent him to get stamps, saying, "Yeah! Like you won't use these up in 2 weeks!" It's true, with my sister being in the convent, I could single-handedly keep the US Postal Service in business!
My Mom likes the Jesus and Mary stamps, too, so I thought it odd last year when she had the non-religious Christmas stamps. My sister said that my mom went to get the Jesus and Mary ones, and the post office lady was really cranky, so when she gave my mom the wrong ones my mom didn't want to tell her they were the wrong ones.

In my sister's entrance info, they said not to send sweets a lot, especially around the holidays, and instead send money for their parties or something along those lines. She said that the first time she visited them, they were there just after Easter, and they got sooo much chocolate, and kept trying to give it back, but were told that they'd be doing a huge favor to the sisters by eating it!

[LaPetiteSoeur]

[quote name='TeresaBenedicta' timestamp='1287887314' post='2181965']
You could send them a roll of stamps-- I used to do that with a good friend of mine who entered the Poor Clares. They really appreciated those!
[/quote]

Stamps and stationary. The LSIC love those! It's great when they get both, because one can't mail a letter without a stamp. Stamps are also getting pricy...

[Piccoli Fiori JMJ]

Toiletries are also appreciated... and depending on what they do, you could gets some bolts of material or other things that can be used to create the things they do. I'm sure cleaning supplies would be very appreciated as well.

[ksterling]

Oh my, I guess I'll have to give up on the NDs - I am a chocoholic.

Kat

[MissScripture]

[quote name='ksterling' timestamp='1288020350' post='2182323']
Oh my, I guess I'll have to give up on the NDs - I am a chocoholic.

Kat
[/quote]
No! You misunderstand! They have so much they can't eat it all! When my sister first went to visit them, it was shortly after Easter. The Sisters kept giving them all sorts of chocolate crosses and such, and the girls all felt bad taking it from them, and the Sisters told them that it would be doing them a favor, because they had so much, they couldn't finish it! I think my sister ended up with something like 2 or 3 chocolate crosses, as did all the other girls (I think there were a total of 7 or 8 of them)! Maybe ND needs you to eat all of their excess chocolate!

[vee]

Wow lots of good suggestions! You people are teh smartz

[krissylou]

[quote name='vee8' timestamp='1288039176' post='2182470']
Wow lots of good suggestions! You people are teh smartz
[/quote]

Why didn't I ask here when I was wracking my brain trying to think of an appropriate gift for a perpetual profession?

I mean, what do you give someone less than twenty-four hours after her "rite of total renunication"??? Miss Manners never covered this.

A mutual friend wrote her a sonnet in honor of her profession. But apparently the sonnet form (which I understand to be notoriously difficult) was not challenging enough so he made it an ACROSTIC SONNET. That was beyond awesomeness, but utterly beyond me.

But STAMPS, I could have done STAMPS!!! Well within my capabilities!