Interrupted Presence

Interrupted by life?

Of course you’ve been! You are a human being, after all. But how do you react to unexpected intrusions? That is the main question raised by this provocative collection from eleven perceptive spiritual seekers. Here are original stories of  “interruptions” they experienced in their own lives that resulted in new insight or revelation or growth — each in his or her own voice, for the first time in print.

• Clarissa Valbuena Aljentera: It was “what if” after “what if” that came tumbling out in tears.
• Stuart Wilson-Smith, CSP: Why was I so confused all the time?
• Danielle R. Ayodele: The question remained suspended in the air, “May I pray for you?”  
• Mariam Pera: This couldn’t wait until Monday. This was real identity theft.
• Marlon Bobier Vargas, SVD: A series of flashbacks of forgotten memories disturbed me.
• Natalie Crary: I’ve worked so hard! Can I not have a single day to relax?  
• Darius A. Villalobos: My uncle had given me one last gift.  
• Marissa Butler, RSM: The only words I heard were, “I see God in you, you see God in me.”  
• Isaac Garcia: I screamed, “Lord have mercy!” from a place I never knew existed.  
• Vivian Cabrera: The most terrible things of the abuse I remember most vividly.  
• Mark Evans Piper: The return to normalcy remains elusive.  

Interrupted Presence features the writing of young adults from a variety of backgrounds — many, but not all, practicing Catholics — who discovered the presence of grace in the process of having their daily lives interrupted by something to which they had to respond. This collection was conceived, compiled, and edited by Mark Evans Piper, Director of Ministry and Mission Advancement for the Sisters of the Cenacle of the North American Province. Piper is a Mercy Associate, an alumnus of Amate House, a Young Voices contributor for the National Catholic Reporter, and lives in Chicago with his wife and their two young children. The authors of the stories are profiled in short biographies in the back of the book.