Giving and Receiving--Lessons from a Pilgrimage!

Today we learned lessons of giving and receiving. After a long day of touring Toledo yesterday, our group planned to sleep in a little and get re-energized for the start of WYD events. I woke up this morning to the sounds of a moderate-sized group of American pilgrims across the street with all their luggage, and was surprised when one of the priests in charge showed up in the kitchen as I was eating breakfast. They were a group of 36 from Allentown, PA, and had shown up at their place of lodging to discover that it was a gym floor (for 214 youth) with only 2 working toilets on the premises. The priest was feeling a little desperate, I think, and wondered if he could borrow my computer to find a place for them all to stay (side note--he was excited that I had a Mac :)). Happily, they were able to find a hotel, and left in much better spirits. It was gratifying to assist fellow pilgrims on their journey, and helped us to be even more grateful for the secure, hospitable lodging we have!

This afternoon things took a different turn... we set out to retrieve our pilgrim's packs, meal tickets, and metro passes. After a long wait in a line we did obtain the tickets and passes (very helpful to have!), but four of us ended up trekking and traveling across the city on a hunt for the backpacks. At the end of the night, still no backpacks, and although we were in good spirits having enjoyed each other's company and the adventure of navigating successfully we felt similarly to the Allentown group from the morning. On a whim however, we stopped by the place across the street from our lodging that was also hosting pilgrims, and found an English-speaking woman, Paula from Mexico, who was leading a group of Americans. We explained our dilemma and she translated to some WYD volunteers. After some Spanish discussion Paula turned to us and said "these people are tired and up to their neck's with problems, come back in the morning and if they don't have extra packs I'll give you eight of ours." Music to our ears after such a long day! So wonderful the good will between all pilgrims here as we navigate the same frustrations and experience the blessings of such a trip with the same heart.

Some more pictures from Toledo :)

(Posted by Elizabeth)