For almost six years, I have gone to daily Mass at Montrose. This year, I began visiting the chapel more often during the day to talk to God. Then, as we know, school closed. And now, at home, I have neither daily mass nor a chapel to visit. My first couple days at home without Montrose were definitely shaky — I complained often and even broke down in tears a couple of times. In retrospect, I believe I cried not only because I missed my friends but also because I missed God. Through talking to friends about my struggling faith, I realized that quarantine is testing my relationship with God more than it has been tested before. 

I recognize now that when everything is given to you, it is so easy to take it for granted. Staying close to God at home takes much more effort than at school. I miss running down the halls to the chapel when I need guidance and having friends and mentors constantly supporting me to become a better person. With all of that gone, I have noticed the difficulty in keeping up a life centered around God. 

In place of the visits I made to the chapel before school, I now run to my local church in the morning before classes start to kneel in God’s presence. The church is empty, dark, and quiet. These visits help me focus on God each day. I am working on spending this time of uncertainty growing in my relationship with God. I know that I will lose motivation and fail often, but I also know that God wants to see the effort. Knowing this gives me hope to turn to him in each moment I struggle.  

As a Faith Peer Leader, I want to help others find purpose in their lives by finding God. Therefore, I encourage you to pray each morning. Tell God what troubles you and give Him the opportunity to work through your everyday actions. It can be five minutes or fifteen, but take some time to open up to God. Through praying, I have personally found excitement to complete boring, everyday tasks in order to become a better person for the world. My faith is what puts my life in perspective and gives purpose to my everyday actions. Although I have moments where I falter everyday, God is where I find hope and how I center myself again.

– Gabriella Bachiochi ’21

21gbachiochi@montroseschool.org