Compassion Without Borders and Quinoa Salad

On May 15, Sister Suzanne Jabro, CSJ spoke with Fuel the Body, Fuel the Soul participants about compassion without borders. Sister Gladys Leigh, CSJ provided her recipe for creative quinoa salad. Find the quinoa salad recipe and a recording of Sister Suzanne’s presentation below!

Fuel the Body, Fuel the Soul is a monthly series held on Zoom. Each session features an introduction to a healthy recipe presented by a sister, a presentation focusing on a spiritual topic and discussion and prayer with a community of women from around the country. There is no cost to attend.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 2-4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of quinoa
• 1/2 cup Kalamata olives
• 1/3 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 cup sliced red onion
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• Lemon or lime juice
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

Rinse quinoa in cold water 4-5 times, or until the water runs clear. Drain, then follow the package instructions to cook the quinoa. Let cool. While the quinoa cools, slice and chop other salad ingredients into bite-sized pieces. Once the quinoa is cool, lightly mix it with other salad ingredients and season to taste. Be creative and select quinoa salad ingredients as you see fit! Enjoy!

I just returned home from the border, as the Sisters of St. Joseph always sponsor Mother’s Day down at the Mexicali border. As a crossover guide and the founder of the nonprofit Border Compassion, I help attend to the needs of asylum-seekers who arrive at a shelter in Mexicali, Mexico, where they await the acceptance of their application and invitation to interview to enter the United States.

Border Compassion invites, coordinates and accompanies volunteers who “crossover” the border into an unknown territory to experience the daily reality of those seeking sanctuary. Founded in 2021, we support 60-150 migrants at Posada del Migrantes Shelter through monthly visits, ESL classes, essential supplies, legal services, trauma-informed care and more.

When I first visited the shelter at Mexicali, I took in the sight of a building that looks like an old, abandoned Motel 6 and thought to myself: What is going on here? The shelter was worn down and full of people. Women, children, men, families. There was trauma, fear and uncertainty, but there was joy, community and compassion too.

I am a storyteller, so when I came back, I told everybody about my experience at the shelter. And then they wanted to come. And I said, “Well, yeah, come with me. Come with me.” And people started giving me money. I mean, a lot of money. So I started Border Compassion, and I was off and running.

Throughout my life, I’ve learned that proximity matters. When you’re at the border, when you’re on the margins, you see differently. You look at the world differently, and there is great potential for transformation. I think right now we need to change the narrative about immigrants.

My grandparents got married at 15 and 19 and left Lebanon. They came through Ellis Island for their honeymoon, and my grandmother said she was never going back because she didn’t like the boat. But the circumstances of immigrants at the border now are completely different. 99% of the people I’ve met at the border are not coming because they want a better life or are going on a honeymoon or they know somebody over here. They are running for their lives from violence.

One young woman I met at the shelter had a six month old baby. I said to her, “Where are you from?” And she said, “I’m from Mexico City.” I asked, “Why did you leave Mexico City?” She told me, “Well, I had a little business. And then they came to me, and they told us we had to pay a tax. It wasn’t much at first, but then they came again and wanted to raise the tax. Still, we paid it. Then, they came for a third time. I told them, ‘We can’t afford to pay any more. It’s just impossible.’ They said, ‘Give us your baby, We’ll sell it.’” She said, “I left that night.”

There are even more horrendous stories that I will not share. Violence that is beyond our imagination. So, they’re running. They’re terrified.

Recently, I have been very distressed. Migrants are on the news every single night, and they’re being deliberately depersonalized, dehumanized and demoralized. It’s causing great fear in children and families. How do we move forward from here? How am I not going to be mad every morning when I wake up and turn on that television?

The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate action of its members.

I’ve had to be intentional about the values I really care about—love and community, relationship and dignity, that we are one. I have to embody love of God and neighbor without distinction. I need to focus on building community and not fall into the trap of self-isolation. I believe that the one way we can promote love of God and neighbor without distinction is to throw the net wide. We have to get out of our own circle, throw the net wide and invite others in.

Compassion can be defined as “a tender response to another’s distress.” But there’s also self-care in compassion. The grounding of my spiritual journey is “give the gift you have received as a gift.” I have received compassion, so I must give compassion. And when you give, you receive in greater abundance.

The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate action of its members. We cannot be silent. We cannot be silent! Find your prophetic voice—speak, show up and take action.