Ode to the Schouse*

The Schouse is the place to be

With all of its lore and mystery

The ladies inside-

They’ve laughed and they’ve cried.

Oh, what a wonderful thing to see!

The Schouse is the place to go,

And no matter what happens, you know

That Saint Catherine delights

In our house bonding nights.

Oh, how I see the love grow!

The Schouse is my favorite place

In Ann Arbor because it has space

For the Lord and His love,

And when push comes to shove,

This life I will always embrace.

The Schouse is the place to be,

When you want to explore and have jubilee

In the Schunnel or the living room,

You friends make my heart go boom.

To live here is to truly have glee!

The Schouse is full of elation,

The finest discernment house in the nation.

Whether you become a nun or tie the knot,

Your future will never rot,

For your time here is a splendid foundation!

*The ‘Schouse’ (“sh” sound, rhymes with house) I’m referring to in this poem is a women’s discernment house called Saint Catherine House (SC House, hence ‘Schouse’) and it is owned by St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Ann Arbor. I moved into the house in August of 2023 and from there, I have bonded with my housemates on a level I never thought possible. In our time together, we have come to lovingly call it the Schouse, and as part of our weekly house bonding, I wrote this poem for a talent show we did. I was inspired not only by the women I live with, but by God and His eternal love that is so evident in my life that I felt compelled to share it with others through poetry.