Brief description of your growing up years and your family*.
My name is Candida Gonzalez Jimenez, I was born on September 20, 1988, I joined the congregation on August 15, 2004.
I come from a migrant family from the state of Puebla, my parents met in Chiapas, got married and had seven children, three boys and four girls; one of my sisters died at age three. We grew up in a family we were poor, however, my parents worked hard and struggled to take care of us; although we always had something to eat and bread on the table. My three siblings Dionicio, Alberto and Maribel sold produce (fruits and vegetables) in the afternoons-after school all the proceeds were used to buy milk for the babies- for me and my two younger siblings, Emiliano and Aide.
My parents gave each of us a great gift of wisdom and advice:
– Wherever you go, be obedient, get things done without being asked
– Share what you have, not what you have left over (because in our house there was seldom anything left over at our table)
– When a visitor comes to visit, ask them if they have eaten and then regardless of their response offer them whatever you have
2) Favorite story about your first or early ministry*
A month after I joined the congregation, Sister Consuelo enrolled me in the parish to give confirmation talks, the funny thing for me was that I was 15 years old and my confirmation students were 40 years old and I told the sister that I couldn’t because they were older and that surely they knew more. I was so scared and that’s how it all started….
3) Why did you enter religious life (Sisters) or choose the Franciscan community (Associates)?
Good question, on many occasions in my life I always ask myself, I entered at 15 years old, coming out of high school and my mother as she was a servant of the chapel in my town, she told me to take a vocational retreat, I did not take it but she insisted, she talked to them, I said yes, I met them for 2 weeks, I fell in love with the life of prayer and I said to myself: I think this is it, I think I want to meet them and let’s see what happens, it is not the right thing to do, to see what happens, life is nothing lightly, but here I am still here.
4) Where do you live now and how do you share your Franciscan values, lifestyle and spirituality*?
I live in the state of Chiapas, specifically in Palenque, a magical town as it is now called, here the Mayan culture flourished….
I share my values being a Sister Menore, in the midst of my people, my village and wherever the Lord of life puts me, speaking by example and that is the biggest challenge for me. You don’t need to have a religion or be religious to do things that are right, at the end of the day what God asks me to do is to do good, to be Candi, to be spontaneous, of course with my being a Franciscan woman.
5) What do you most want others to know about you and the Franciscan community?
Some friends and relatives ask me, “When is the wedding? And I almost want to tell them and when is the funeral? Society has marked us with the fact that we are born women to get married and have children, take care of the husband, I’m not saying it’s bad, it’s just that there is another way of life.
I can fill a will with my thoughts, one of my mottos is: I live TODAY, just for today, one day at a time, professing to live the gospel, I don’t know what happens tomorrow, I don’t worry about that, because I trust in God and wherever I am I will be there being a Franciscan Menore together with my community that God gave me.
I want you to know that we religious are not bitter women, those who were left by the groom or at the altar, we religious are more than that, we are women who want to give life in another way, offering our being…..
One of your favorite quotes from St. Francis
“Preach the Gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words.” This quote is popularly attributed to St. Francis of Assisi
…. a few words to the wise man, you don’t need to shout to express yourself, just be you, with the way you live.