Sister Bernadette Joyce spent her schooldays dreaming of far-away lands as she read about the missions in a magazine she delivered as a school job.
Little did she realise back then that she would go on to become a nun and spend over 40 years on the missions – 27 of those working with the poor in the shanty towns of Chile.
It was the time the Headford native spent in Chile that has formed the basis for her new novel, ‘Eva’s Journey’. The book, centred on an eight-year old girl moving through the years to her as a woman in her forties, brings to life the sense of fear and deprivation that people felt in Chile under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
While the book is a work of fiction, the story is based on real life events that Bernadette, who is originally from the townland of Carrowbeg, witnessed and experienced whilst working in the South American country.
Eva had her life shaped by the disappearance of her grandfather, an experience common in Chile during the time Bernadette spent there, from 1974 to 2001.
Eva’s battle against the rough hand she had been dealt is a representation, according to Bernadette, of the strength of character she encountered in so many people in Chile.
The novel came about because Bernadette felt she had a story that needed to be told, despite never intending to write a book.
“I was hoping the idea would go away, but it never went away.
“It had to be done; in fact I was compelled inside my own conscience to write because of the awful experience I had towards the end. I can’t disclose that now, but it is horrific, and I said these people had to have their story brought into the light,” she said.
Capturing the sense of fear and anguish that was everyday life in Chile was no mean feat. However, Bernadette explained that having lived under it herself, she found it easier to put into words.
“It was difficult alright but when you had lived in it, you were very aware of the fear factor. And even ourselves, as the four missionaries there, we knew that we were being watched and nobody trusted anybody,” said Bernadette.
The Parish Priest the missions were sent to was very right-wing. His praise of Pinochet was something that would often cause the nuns’ ‘eyes to glaze over’.
“At one stage he said to somebody, ‘you know they aren’t that bad, I don’t think they have communist eyes’,” she laughed, recalling the way in which he viewed the missionaries.
Bernadette chose to launch her book on International Women’s Day in homage to the strength of the women of Chile and the huge contribution they made to the struggle against poverty.
“I admired the fact that the women there carried the can in every sense of the word. They paved the way, they were extraordinary women, and I’m glad I’m launching it on International Women’s Day. They deserve to be recognised and attributed,” she said.
The final part of the book is set in the Atacama Desert where the homeless went in search of a piece of land and a home, and where an ‘awful tragedy occurred’. Bernadette spent her final days in Chile with the homeless in the desert.
Bernadette takes no praise for her extraordinary life. She believed that she gained much more than she gave and was hugely thankful for the experiences she has had.
And while she now lives in the city, her links to Carrowbeg remain strong, with her nephew and his children still living there.
The village now boasts having two published authors with Bernadette joining ranks with her neighbour and friend, Tommy Walsh, known for ‘Favourite Poems we Learned in School’ – something which she is very proud of.
‘Eva’s Journey’ launched on Tuesday night last at the Ardilaun Hotel and all proceeds from it will go towards helping the families in Chile that Bernadette has written about.
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