He was 106 years old and had a story capable of spanning almost a century of Italian life, between work, service, waiting and a vocation that arrived when many thought that the time for choices had now passed. Sister Anna Maria of the Sacred Heartto the century Anna Perfumoof the Perpetual Adorers of the Blessed Sacrament of Seregno, died on 9 July in the cloistered monastery of Seregno, in Brianza, where she had lived since 2012. She was considered the oldest nun in Italy and one of the longest-serving nuns in the world.
But the personal data, however extraordinary, tells only part of his story. His life was marked by a call cherished for a long time and realized in an unexpected way: the call to the contemplative life.
Born in Rocca Grimalda, in the Alessandria area, Anna Perfumo had felt the desire to consecrate herself to God since she was young. But, as she herself said, there always seemed to be “obstacles” placed in the way.
In 1937, after graduating as a primary school teacher, she chose to respond to the needs of her family and agreed to work as an educator with the Costa shipowners’ family in Liguria, where she followed the private education of her children. Then came teaching in elementary schools. Life seemed to take her elsewhere than the monastery, but the desire for consecration remained intact.
Another decisive step came when a friend proposed that she assist an elderly and sick priest in Rivarolo, near Genoa. “Lord, maybe you’re calling me there,” he said he thought. He remained at his side for thirty years, until the priest’s death.
Only then, now in his seventies, was he able to try to realize the dream he had cherished throughout his life. Fearing that advanced age and health conditions could represent a limitation, he almost thought it was “a presumption” to ask to enter the monastery. Instead the doors of the Sacramentine of Albaro, in Genoa, opened. His vocation thus arrived in adulthood, when many believe the season of great decisions was over.
Then transferred to the monastery of Perpetual Adorers of the Blessed Sacrament of SeregnoSister Annamaria has become in recent years a presence loved not only by her sisters but also by thousands of people who have come to know her testimony through the internet.
What made her an “outside the box” religious was also her relationship with social media. Despite having passed 100 years, Sister Annamaria used the web and through videos published on YouTube shared thoughts on the Gospel, spiritual reflections and words of encouragement. A cloistered nun who, without leaving the monastery, had managed to create a bridge with the outside world, reaching distant people thanks to digital communication tools.
After her hundredth birthday, the television director and author Mimma Russo he had told it in some videos made inside the seclusion of Seregno: the smiling face, the mild voice, the surprising lucidity and above all the attention towards others. Even in recent years, Sister Annamaria continued to take care of the more fragile sisters, demonstrating that age had not extinguished the desire for service.
«A few months ago I went to visit her to bring her the best wishes of the city on her birthday, and I still remember his clarity, his sweet look and the serenity of his smile», the memory of the mayor of Seregno Alberto Rossi.
Sister Annamaria leaves the memory of a life lasting 106 years, but above all of a singular testimony: that of a woman who knew how to wait for the moment of her vocation, enter the monastery at 70 and, having reached the age of large numbers, also use technology to continue to speak to the hearts of people.
