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Just a couple of years ago, Esmeralda Solís Gonzáles was walking the catwalk in her local beauty pageant. After winning the competition, the Mexican beauty queen took a very different path in her life. She abandoned her crown, and her job as a nutritionist, to don the habit of the Poor Clare Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament.

The 22-year-old, who was raised Catholic, first met with the Poor Clares when she was 14 and the sisters made a big impression on her. Although she won the beauty title that most girls dream of, it wasn’t her heart’s desire. She believed God’s timing allowed her to experience the more normal life of a young woman before turning to her religious vocation.

Her story is inspiring for young women all over the world, and you can discover more about the novice in the interview she did with the Catholic News Agency, reported in the National Catholic Register. However, we’ve selected some of our favorite pearls of wisdom by the postulant, which will hopefully guide you in your spiritual life, even if you’re not called to a religious vocation.