“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” -Mother Teresa
Hi there! My name is Madison, I’m 17 years old, the oldest of a sweet little southern cajun family consisting of four girls. I attended NOCCA (New Orleans Creative Center for the Arts) this past year with a discipline in dance and jumped into a wide open world of art. After coming a long way through intense dance training and an exposure to the world of art, I’ve developed a love for creative movement that will remain in my heart for as long as I live. While studying at NOCCA, I also found myself studying the people around me. I studied not only the colorful artists at my school, but also the homeless, and normal people I would pass everyday in the city. Something, although I did not know what at the time, stirred in my heart regarding these people that I encountered. I wished to know and talk to them. Although I didn’t take opportunities to talk to those on the streets, I got to know many beautiful people at NOCCA, and I am amazed at what treasure I found in them.
As the Spring fast approached, I was faced with that big intimidating question of where I was going to go to college. I began to create some exciting and ambitious plans as far as college goes. By the grace of God, my plans were interrupted with a random stumble upon Heart’s Home. To make a long story short, during my visit to Heart’s Home in Brooklyn and seeing the warmth and beauty not only in the home, but in the faces of the people when we walked through the doors of their homes, I felt so sure that the desires of my heart were met in the simple mission of compassion found in Heart’s Home.
I believe that authentic love is a mission that we were all created for and that we are all called to. In September, I will have the most wonderful opportunity to live in the Heart’s Home center in L’viv, Ukraine for 14 months and learn how to have a truly compassionate heart and how to answer to my call to authentic love. I know that it will be a challenge in many ways, but I know that I will have the help of my strong friends (and the Heart’s Home patrons) St. Therese of Liseux and St. Maximilian Kolbe as well as my Mother Mary.
I can’t wait to meet the people who are just waiting for someone to let them know that they are loved. I can’t wait to meet the artists who I can hopefully form a connection with through mutual artistry. I can’t wait to discover what it means to be compassionate. I can’t wait to experience a new culture and language! I anticipate my mission with great joy, and pray that I will be given the grace to bring beauty to the lonely hearts.
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