Jessica Powers (1905-1988) entered the Carmel of the Mother of God in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1941. For forty-seven years, she lived a contemplative life of prayer and fasting, of community and sacrifice, indeed, a life of faith, hope, and love. Her Scotch-Irish background marked her with both humor and melancholy, but her heart was centered on the mystery of God. God graced Jessica Powers with a poetic heart. Year after year, her words captured various aspects of our human journey: birth and death, love and fear, sin and grace, joy and sorrow.
Jessica Powers was a noticer ; few things escaped her attentive mind and heart. Graced with an agile pen, she was able to transpose life s experiences into verses that have enriched thousands of people s lives. We all stand in need of models and mentors, of witnesses of gospel living and wise guides. Although she would never have claimed this title, Jessica Powers is a mentor. Through her insights and creative writings, she has left us a legacy of wisdom that can sustain us on life s long pilgrimage. Though a cloistered contemplative, now deceased some twenty years, she continues to teach us many things about the ways of God and the wonders of God's world.
