Hannah Graves

Missionary, Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School, Namwera, Malawi

The College gave me a deep desire for excellence and goodness, especially an eagerness to try and re-instill an understanding of the good and beautiful into our broken society. As a result of this desire to restore these beautiful, good things, I have wanted to cut back on the materialism of our day in a drastic way for a long time. But that seemed so impossible back home, in the state of Washington.

At first, I would say that I found my way to Malawi by accident, but I think it would be more accurate to say that it was Providence. A year ago, I traveled to Malawi as part of a Sister Parish delegation and discovered a life that I had only dreamed of—a simple life close to the earth, full of song, laughter, and faith. In this place, I saw the possibility of living simply and in harmony with God’s world at a place where I truly have something to offer. So I returned to teach literature and history for a year, but also to learn how to live my life more beautifully.