A Life of Holy Curiosity and Good Cheer

Me and Sr. Seraphine

For the past three years I had the privilege of being the companion of Sr. Seraphine Tucker, who resided in the Dooley Center care facility at Mount St. Scholastica until her death on October 15, 2022. My role was to visit with her on a regular basis, help her send Christmas cards to her family, accompany her to community gatherings, and the like. In return, I got to learn firsthand how to live a good Benedictine life from one of the wisdom figures of the monastery.

I took an immediate liking to Sr. Seraphine because she reminded me of my dad and his siblings — plain spoken, tough as hickory, hardworking, faith filled, practical, and grateful for life’s blessings. Looking after her three younger brothers on the farm where she was raised made Sr. Seraphine an instinctual caregiver, and she set many an elementary and high school student on the right path during her years as a science and math teacher. She embodied the Benedictine value of stability (having celebrated her 75th anniversary of monastic profession in 2021) and was a faithful seeker of God, whom she found in the Eucharist, in other people, and in creation.

Two characteristics of Sr. Seraphine that I found particularly remarkable were her curiosity and ever-present cheerfulness. Albert Einstein counseled, “Never lose a holy curiosity,” and until the end of her days, Sr. Seraphine maintained her holy curiosity about the natural world, mechanics, and most importantly, other people. Her interest in the lives and thoughts of others was what led her to be so hospitable to guests.

Sr. Seraphine had few needs, and more than any other monastic I’ve known, she hewed to St. Benedict’s instruction to never grumble. Rather, she was habitually cheerful, and why not? She trusted implicitly in God’s care and providence.

Although I will miss Sr. Seraphine very much, I’m delighted that she has been reunited with her family and monastic sisters who preceded her in death. I don’t know that she’ll join the angel choir, but surely heaven’s maintenance department can use someone interested in the workings of the universe, and she’d make a mighty fine guardian angel as well. In addition, her holy curiosity and cheerfulness will continue to guide all of us who remember her with affection and gratitude.