I wasn’t going to Lourdes. And then I changed my mind.
The clock was winding
down, and only a few hours remained before the application packet was
due. I still needed money, information, and paperwork, plus I had
to hunt down the person in charge. In the blink of an eye, it was
taken care of, and I was stepping off the overnight train and into the country
of France. Just like that.
Day 1:
Upon arriving in Paris, a friend and I thought it would be fun to walk
around the streets sticking our noses up in the air to “blend in” with the
arrogant French stereotype… Turns out we were the only ones. But
at least we kept ourselves occupied while some people in my group tried to
figure things out; supposedly the trains were booked, and it was impossible for
us to get to Lourdes. But I knew that if God wanted us to get to
Lourdes, we’d find a way.
And we did!
We ended up having to get a few different types of tickets (splitting our
group up a bit), but at least we were all going to end up in the same
place! My ticket was for a train leaving that evening… which
meant, for the remainder of the day, Paris was calling! I stayed
with a buddy and together we climbed the Eiffel Tower! We tackled
those stairs, even with all of our luggage for the 10-day break. I
decided it would be very fitting to sing that song from Mulan (“Let’s get
down to business…!”) to keep me motivated as well as keep things
interesting. It worked! With a lively step and a
lack of breath, we reached the “second floor” (about halfway up… but still very
high)! The view was beautiful, although, alas, we have no picture
proof (both my camera and my iPod died, boo-hoo)!
Day 2:
Another overnight train later and I was in Lourdes! Many
adventures took place including a delicious visit to the local pastry shop, and
a lady kicking me out of McDonald’s for no apparent reason (I never knew what I
did wrong because I don’t know a lick of French)! Our leaders
hadn’t arrived in town yet, so I didn’t discover the heart of Lourdes until…
Day 3:
International Mass in a giant underground Basilica?
What? I thought there would be a couple helpers and some
pilgrims at Lourdes! What a surprise it was when a gargantuan
Church hidden beneath our shoes was packed with people from all over the world,
armed and ready for Mass! I got to go on the altar with other
Frannies to lead the crowd in the “Our Father”. It was
amazing!
Later on in the day, we
got assigned our stations for the week. I was told that I would be
serving in the baths—the miraculous waters (from the same spring Bernadette dug
years ago) that people come from all over the world to wash in! I
went from being a study-abroad student to being a privileged servant in Catholic
Disneyland. God picked me up from Gaming, set me down Lourdes, and
plunged me right in.
Day 4:
Monday morning we went on a tour of different places St. Bernadette
lived. It was quite fantastic; I felt like I was walking in her
shoes! Then, I, along with nine other Franciscan girls, proceeded
to the “Piscines” (the Baths) wearing our nurse-like outfits.
After praying the rosary with the other women serving that day, we
first-timers were split up into different baths where we would remain for the
entire shift. Then, at 2:00pm, the curtain was opened and women of
all different nationalities poured in.
The very first woman I
helped left me in tears (although she probably didn’t know it).
The love in her face, the determination in her eyes… All I
could think about was the magnitude of her faith. This woman had
traveled the distance and gone through only Lord knows what to reach that moment
in time. And now she was there, humbly praying before Jesus and
his Mother, while stepping into the icy water. She was seemingly
unaware of its bitter coldness, and even of the fact that I was still in the
room. For the rest of my shift, and for each and every woman
present, I was struck by the faith that shone before me, a faith that was
visible in the form of actual human beings. My first day serving
in the baths and I was already full to the brim!
That evening, my voice
echoed throughout all of Lourdes as I was honored to introduce the First
Luminous Mystery at the “Torchlight Procession.” What a wonderful
gift, and to see from a stage hundreds of candle flames poking through the
night’s falling darkness! I felt like the entire world was in
front of me, and I knew that there was no place on Earth I would have rather
been.
To be
continued…
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