Written in July 2024 by Ludovica Hofmans and Reninca Van Elzen
Summer was slow in coming to Belgium and rather temperamental … We did decide on a date for a visit to Antwerp Zoo, and on that day, 19 July 2024, the weather was very fine, even a little too hot (30°C).
But, equipped with hats and bottles of water, we went ahead with our trip to the zoo. We (Anna Hendrickx and ourselves) were lucky enough to be accompanied by Claire, our coordinator, and Sr Marcelline and Sr Maïté, our leaders, who were visiting Belgium!
Pauline, a friend of Sr Mia Van Looy, was also on hand to help transport us as all three of us were in wheelchairs. We thank her again very much!
I, Ludovica, really admired Pauline, Marcelline and Claire, who pushed us all the way. Thanks to them, I had a great outing. Mia, on the other hand, unfortunately couldn’t be there for health reasons. And Frieda couldn’t make it.
At the zoo, we were delighted with the flora and fauna. We came mainly to see the animals, but we were also very lucky to be able to see such beautiful trees and plants!
We were also delighted to observe the different animals: the elegant giraffes, the orang-utans who seemed to be chatting with Anna, the sparrows that we used to see in our towns but which have now all but disappeared, feeding their young there in front of us, the various colourful birds, the elephants, the penguins, the monkeys….
For me, Reninca, it really brought back memories of going to the zoo with my parents. I just found that there were a lot more monkeys. We used to go to the zoo every Sunday afternoon. In fact, the Sunday before she died, my mum asked to go again.
So we made the most of that afternoon, despite the heat, because there were plenty of shady areas to protect us, and we went home full of stars in our eyes.
NB: After this visit to the zoo, Sister Reninca’s health gradually deteriorated. She was very well cared for by her whole community and the sisters from other congregations who also live at the Antwerp home, during her long and difficult crossing to the other side of the river. She found eternal rest on 13 December 2024.
