Dearest Sisters, Canossian Fathers, Secular Missionaries, Lay Canossians, Lay Missionaries & Friends,

2002 has been a most eventful and grace-filled year.  As I look back, I really thank God for all the blessings he has showered on our little Province of Singapore, in spite of the constant threats to peace and harmony in the world.  At the recent Provincial Chapter we experienced the creative energy that comes from an attentive listening to the Spirit, spurring us on to have the courage to take concrete steps that would lead us to be a more formative and pastoral presence within our works of charity.  I thank our Sisters (Sr. Angela Ng, Sr. Geraldine Lim and Sr. Cecily Pavri) for having responded to this thrust by stepping down from administrative roles, so as to empower lay leaders to head our schools.  It means a shift from holding positions of power to becoming a humble but significant animating and formative presence which reaches out to touch the lives of persons by the power of the Greatest Love.

As for myself, I shall also soon have the grace to return to serve at the grassroots level, to be in direct apostolate with Sisters, laity and youth. 

Thank you my dear Sisters and friends for your love and your trust.  I have enjoyed journeying together with all of you without exception during the last six and a half years. 

It was exciting even though very challenging to put into practice Team Leadership. I am very thankful to Sr. Marilyn, Sr. Anne, Sr. Angela and Sr. Christina for their outstanding qualities of loving dedication, reliability, creativity, competence and generous service in the spirit of collaborative & co-responsible leadership.  We have really put in common our gifts of nature and of grace, in order to serve the Sisters of the Province. Sr. Marilyn, Sr. Angela and Sr. Anne have worked wonders in helping the Sisters and Lay staff of the Canossian Eduplex to forge a common vision of an Eduplex built on love. Sr. Christina is zealously carrying on with the development of our Myanmar mission. 

It was so satisfying to have crafted our Vision and Mission together with the delegates of the last two Provincial Chapters and come up with our Canossian Life Statement (1995-1996) and Canossian Identity Statement (2001-2002).  We are committing ourselves to live our identity as consecrated women more radically and our common mission in solidarity with the poor in the spirit of JPIC.  The Spirit led us to formulate our Chapter Resolutions based on the core values of the charism.  We really felt the need to deepen the contemplative dimension of our life so as to be rooted in God and thus be credible witnesses of the Greatest Love in the here and the now.

The Province will still need to continue to focus on Transformational Leadership - empowering Sisters and Laity to "lead from within" nourished by an integrated spirituality, creating new possibilities and blazing new trails in a more simple style of life and mission.  Ours is indeed a God of surprises who will lead us towards discovering and experiencing new ways of expressing the charism in our time. 

All of us realize that we need to intensify our prayer for vocations and for our communities to become more "open" and "vocational," sharing life and prayer with young women who are seeking direction in life, and witnessing to the joy of belonging to the Lord.  In fact through our mission outreach to Myanmar, young women there have come to know and be attracted to our charism and five of our aspirants have asked to start their first formation.  Sr. Marie De Roza and Sr. Mary Yong will leave for Myanmar on 16 December to prepare them for entry into Postulancy next year.  Sr. Chris has left for Yangon on 11 December to prepare the way for them and accompany them to Taunggyi to initiate the little Canossian formative community there.  Let us continue to pray for a growth in missionary spirit so that more of us will be ready to leave the comfort and security of our island home so as to share the treasures of our Canossian spirituality and mission with our sisters and brothers in Myanmar. 

At this time of the life of our Province, let us ask ourselves: How is God leading us to be more like him? Could it be by… 

	living a more simple life-style and trusting more in Divine Providence?
	being more open and loving to one another in community?
	sharing the Word of God and our Canossian spirituality with the laity?

As we celebrate the birthday of Jesus this Christmas, let us remember that He who is the Prince of Peace has come to be our servant and to give his life so that we may "have life and have it to the full." (John 10:10).

Thank you for your prayers for my mother and me.  As you can see from the photograph, by the grace of God, we are both keeping well.  Together with my Councillors, Sr. Angela and Sr. Christina, we pray that Jesus may bless you and all your dear ones with his love and his peace this Christmas & throughout the coming year!

Heartfelt thanks to Sr. Chris Santhou & Sr. Mag Ee for their excellent work as Editorial Team of Canorità!