Women's Wednesday - Being Single the Right Way

I have (recently) said that being single is not easy, and I stick to that claim.  However, there is a right way to be single and a wrong way.  Believe me, more often than not, I am the wrong kind of single.  So don't go calling my a hypocrite just because I can dish out advice that I'm not great at taking myself.  Like I said before, being single is not easy.

So even though I'm not great at taking my own advice, I am going to give it.  Hopefully, by writing this, it will sink in for me, too, and I will begin to take my own advice!  So, here are my Top Ten ways to be single:

10.  Be pure.  Ok, it seems like this is impossible these days.  It's difficult to not believe the lie that nobody will date you if you want to wait until marriage.  It's like, marriage might be my Vocation, but I'll never get married if I want to stay pure.  So if Vocations are supposed to lead us to holiness, and being impure is not holy, how do we win?  Well, have faith.  If you are going to marry that person, then they will be happy to wait for you.  If they are truly going to bring you to holiness in your marriage, than they should start now, before the marriage, by helping to protect your purity.  If, however, they aren't going to protect your holiness now, than what's going to be so different after those vows are taken?  Not much.  Not much at all.

9.  Have friends.  It sounds obvious, doesn't it?  But too often the reason that a person is single is because they are a work-aholic.  And then they don't have time for friends, either.  Work is good and important and necessary, but God told us to rest for a reason.  If you're lonely while you're single, friendship may not remove the longing for romance, but it will help you to be less lonely in general.  Surround yourself with loved ones.  Have girls who are your friends and guys who are your friends.  There is nothing more attractive than a person who loves. 

8.  Read the Bible.  If you ever start to despair that God won't answer your prayers for a relationship, or that He's forgotten you, than pick up your Bible and open it to pretty much any story with a woman involved (pretty much any story, but not all of them).  God's timing really isn't our timing, and it is obvious in Scripture.  BUT, just because God doesn't give us what we ask for the very second we ask for it, doesn't mean that He's not going to answer our prayers.  It doesn't mean that He has forgotten us.  Read, re-read, re-read again, memorize and remember those stories. 

7.  Pray for your spouse.  I frequently wonder what my spouse is doing "right now."  Where is he?  What is he thinking?  Is he happy?  Is he sad?  Whenever I have those thoughts, I pray for my husband.  I hope that he is praying for me, too.  Pray for your spouse regularly.  Ask God to bless him. 

6.  Pray about things besides your spouse.  Don't forget that there is more than one type of prayer.  And don't forget that there is more than one person who needs prayer.  Don't obsess with just that one prayer, but open your eyes to how good God is to you always.  Praise Him.  Thank Him.  Over prayers of petition for other people.  Ask for His advice for other areas in your life.  Ask God what you can be doing right now to best glorify Him.  Pray for your spouse, but don't limit your spiritual life to that one thing.

5.  Talk about other things than being single.  Like before, don't just talk about how difficult it is being single, how sad you are that you're single, what you're doing to do find someone else, or how nobody is ever going to love you because you're too (fat, stupid, annoying, ugly, pimply, sick, weird, etc).  Nobody wants to sit and listen to you complain about these things all the time.  And nobody wants to listen to you obsess about how great you are at being single.  There's got to be more to you than just the fact that you're single.  Prove it.  Talk about other things.

4.  Watch movies and TV shows, read books and listen to music that will inspire you.  Some movies and songs make me, personally, really sad.  I see these couples who are so cute and perfect (and, therefore, annoying) and I think about how I wish I had those things.  I become jealous of fictional characters.  Yikes!  How ridiculous!  If you finish watching romantic movies feeling sad, it's bad.  If you leave feeling inspired, hopeful, or good, than keep it in your collection!  If it makes you feel that way now, think how much greater it will be once you find your spouse! 

3.  Have an interesting life.  You don't want to meet a really great guy and have absolutely nothing to talk about with him.  I'm not saying that you should just live adventure after adventure after adventure.  It gets boring to listen to people only tell one type of story, or have opinions about one type of thing.  Learn new things.  Do new things.  Experience new things.  And you'll find that this not only makes it easier to meet your spouse, but that you are more fulfilled, too.

2.  Don't do things so that you can meet your spouse.  Do things for yourself.  Don't worry at every concert, lecture, hike, night out at the movies, etc., if you're going to meet someone there.  Go to have fun.  For yourself.  Consciously check yourself before you go, and occasionally while you're there, to see why you're behaving the way that you are.  You don't need a guy by your side to have fun.  That's not a good life.  Just have fun now.

1.  Be joyful.  It's obvious, and not obvious.  But joy is not a feeling.  It's a decision.  It's a lifestyle.  Be someone who sees the good in life.  And that might take practice at first, but if you do it enough, you'll form a habit and it'll come naturally.  Relax.  Don't take things too seriously that don't need to be taken seriously.  Live a life of love, peace and joy, and romance will find you. 

Being Single on St. Valentine's Day

Here's a humble confession for me to make:  I have never had a Valentine.  Not once.  And many people in my position would become very bitter about the holiday because of that fact.  However, in my opinion, Valentine's Day is one of the best holidays out there!  But I have heard it said SOOOOO many times that Valentine's Day is just a Hallmark Holiday and that we shouldn't need a holiday to help us to remember to tell people that we love them.



But so what?!  You're really going to let someone dictate to you how to celebrate Valentine's Day?  Are you really going to be one of those people?  If you don't like it, then do something else.  But don't NOT celebrate love just because Hallmark is making a pretty penny off the day.



Love should be celebrated every day, that's true.  So why would we purposefully not celebrate it on Valentine's Day?  You know who wins when you do that?  Satan!  That's right!  If he can get in your head and take your attention off of love, then he wins that battle. 



St. Valentine was a real human being, who truly believed in love (God is love), who truly believed in the Sacrament of Marriage (which is a Sacrament, not a legal institution), and he truly did die because he believed so strongly in the necessity of the Sacrament which had become illegal in Rome that he performed marriages in secret, was later caught and killed for performing marriages!  What a tragedy it is that we are so embittered by the holiday now-of-days.  I guarantee that St. Valentine would be heartbroken to know that his name was associated with such hatred.  He died for love.  And sometimes I feel like, when we "hate" Valentine's Day, we martyr him all over again.



I have a lot of love in my life.  I have friends, family, co-workers, teens, volunteers and parishioners at the church I attend/work at who love me and whom I love in return.  And it's good, necessary, and important to show them that love every day, even on St. Valentine's Day.



I refuse to let this holiday make me bitter.  I refuse to be sad simply because I do not have romantic love in my life at this moment in time.  I may not have romance, but I have love.  And I will celebrate that love on this very important day.



Will you be my Valentine?  Will you show me that I'm important to you, and that you love me?  I hope that I can do my best doing just that to everyone I meet today.  Please join me.

Being Single Isn't Easy

I love the line in the movie "The Princess Bride," when the Man in Black says, "Life is pain, Highness.  Anyone who says differently is selling something."  Well that's how I feel when people write blogs or act as if being single is so great, and that it's not difficult at all.  I always want to ask them, "What are you selling?"

Maybe it is easy for them.  Maybe it is fun for them.  But let me tell you what my experience of the single life is:  it's difficult.  It's lonely.  It's scary.

Now I'm not saying that the married life IS easy.  I can't comment on that because I have no experience being married.  I can tell you, though, what I've heard, and it's that being married is also difficult.  And lonely.  And scary.

So where does that leave us?  Well, quite plainly, it leaves us with the knowledge that life is just generally difficult.  And lonely.  And scary.  But that doesn't mean that it's bad.

Yes, it's true...I don't want to be single.  I would love to be in a romantic relationship, be swept off my feet and ride off in the sunset on a horse with the one I love.  Ok, maybe not that last part; that sounds a bit too cheesy for my taste (again, not that it's bad, just not my taste).  But in fact, I do want to be in a relationship.

But if being single is difficult for you, it's ok.  And just because some people find it easy, fun and exciting, doesn't mean that it has to be that way for everyone.  We are all different, and so we all experience singleness differently.  If you are single and long to be in a relationship, than I encourage you to pray about those feelings.  All challenging things in our lives can give glory to God.  I promise you that if you use those feelings to bring Him glory, that it will change you.  No, being single might not feel any better.  But at least it will have purpose.

Please don't let anyone make you feel bad for feeling bad about being single.  Hiding, suppressing or ignoring our feelings isn't what gives glory to God.  It's ok to feel what you feel.  It's not ok to let those feelings control you.  To wallow in them.  The sit in them.  To act out because of them.  All kinds of Saints have experienced sadness and loneliness and anger, and given that to God to give Him glory.  Think about Saint Therese of Lisieux who "smiles through her tears."  That doesn't mean she doesn't feel the sadness.  She does, though, smile through it.

Through all of the things in your life, happy things, sad things, frustrating things, scary things, lonely things and lovely things, one goal should you keep:  use it to give glory to God, and all will be well.

Frustration and Disappointment

I sat down to write this post, knowing that I would write about frustration and disappointment, things I feel a lot of times in my life.  I knew that I had a lot to say on these topics, but when I started to write, the words stopped.  I wrote and re-wrote several beginnings to this post, only to become frustrated and disappointed with the way it came out.  I wanted to give up, but then I remembered what I wanted to say:  to not give up in the face of these things.  How ironic.

It's not really that ironic, though, is it?  When I really think about it, I can see clearly how it is Satan who used these tools against me in order to prevent me from writing against the things he uses to stop us from doing good works!  

The fact of the matter is that life is frustrating and disappointing a lot of the times.  Maybe this is on my heart right now because it's the holiday season, which is supposed to be joyful and beautiful but tends, instead, to be challenging and sad.  Or maybe it's because I've been reading the book of Job, which is a book that focuses a lot on frustrations and disappointments.  I remember one time I heard a speaker say (I don't remember who, sorry!) that the thing that makes the book of Job such a frustrating book to read is the very first verse of the entire book, which says, "In the land of Uz there was a blameless and upright man named Job, who feared God and avoided evil."  If only Job was a bad guy!  How easy it would be to sit there and point fingers and say that he deserved all of the things that happened to him.  But that's not the case.  Bad things happen to good people, and that's the frustrating part of life.

I'd say that, overall, I'm a pretty "good" person, whatever that means.  I sometimes feel a lot like Job, even though I didn't lose everything that I owned.  I also wasn't blameless in the eyes of the Lord.  I guess it's a big leap to compare myself to Job.  But I have a problem, that I don't really know what a name for it is.  I guess I'd call it a "Spirit of Annoyance," although someone will probably tell me why that is theologically incorrect.  However, that's the only phrase that I can think of to describe myself.  I get annoyed really easily.  Too easily.  It's annoying how often I get annoyed.  I get annoyed at other people, but I also get annoyed at myself.

These feelings can be sinful, but they usually start in a good place.  When I am feeling these negative emotions, I can usually identify the reason why:  I crave the good.  Anything good.  If I am feeling frustrated with something in my life, it's usually because I can see that there is a good in my life that isn't being fulfilled.  When I am frustrated with my singleness, I can see that it is a result of the fact that I am called to be a wife and a mother, and that those things are good, and that my calling hasn't been fulfilled yet.  My call to those things is a good thing, and that good thing is missing in my life.  Or, when someone criticizes me, especially when I've done something good and "deserve" to be praised or rewarded, I get really disappointed.  Why?  Because recognition of my good works IS a good thing, because it's recognizing the good that God has put in me!  That's not wrong!  

Like all things in our lives, we can either use them to glorify God or to glorify something other than God (like ourselves).  Scripture says that "We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).  Notice that it does NOT say that "Everything happens for a reason."  God does not create bad things in our lives.  Ever.  Those things are a result of sin.  But God does let bad things become good things when we turn them into good things.  

Think back to the story of Joseph, way back in the Book of Genesis.  Joseph had every reason in the world to be frustrated.  His own brothers plotted to kill him.  Rather than killing him, they decided to sell him into slavery.  Joseph made the best out of that situation, only to be framed for a crime he did not do, and be put into jail.  While in jail, he made the best of the situation and helped a man who failed to acknowledge or help him for years afterwards.  Finally, the man remembered Joseph, went to Pharaoh, said what good things Joseph had done, and Joseph was finally released.  His name was finally cleared, and he finally recieved the honor that was due to him.  When Joseph's brothers ask him for help (not knowing who Joseph is), Joseph reveals himself to them and says this:  "God, therefore, sent me on ahead of you to ensure for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives in an extraordinary deliverance.  So it was not really you but God who had me come here; and he has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of all his household, and ruler over the whole land of Egypt" (Genesis 45:7-8).  Later on, Joseph says, "Even though you meant harm to me, God meant it for good, to achieve this present end, the survival of many people.  So now, do not fear.  I will provide for you and for your children" (Genesis 50:20-21).  God has the power to take the disappointments in our lives and turn them into great things, good things!  If only we are good and trust in Him.

The biggest thing to remember about Joseph's story is that he never stopped being good.  In all of the accounts of Joseph, we never see him do anything evil, foolish, or disobedient.  He doesn't let emotions get in the way of his holiness.  And God rewards that for him.  Trust that God has a plan for you.  Ask Him what His plan is.  And surely He will show you how to give Him glory through it all.

Prayer:  Lord, I am feeling frustrated and disappointed right now, especially with _________________.  Please give me comfort.  Please show me how I can glorify you through this situation.  I know that you are good and would only give me good.  If there is anything that I can do to bring about a positive change, please open my eyes to it.  I believe that you will help me.  Thank you.

Questions for reflection:

• What are you frustrated with in your life right now?  How can you use that thing to give glory to God?
• What are you disappointed with in your life right now?  How can you use that thing to give glory to God?
• Do you see how these things are a result of the fact that there is a good missing in your life?  How can you let God replace that good?
• What scripture stories are helpful to you, to give you hope when you are feeling down?  Maybe one of the ones mentioned here:  Job, Joseph?  Maybe there are others:  Infertility stories like Sarah, Hannah or Elizabeth, or stories of sick people who have suffered for long times, or even Mary who watches her son die on the cross.  These types of stories are all over Scripture.  

World Youth Day - Day 12 (Home)

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Home.  Relief.  Joy.  Memories.  Love.  Suffering.  Endurance.  Pain.  Healing.  Disappointment.  Hope.  Faith.  Inspiration.  How could I possibly pick just one word to describe my journey?  All of these words describe it.  It is on this last leg of the journey that I finally have some time to reflect on these words and how they have described the pilgrimage of World Youth Day 2013.  

I woke up this morning on the plane coming home from Rio.  Again, it was a restless sleep on a cold plane.  There's just no easy way to sleep on a plane (unless maybe you're in first class, but I don't know anything about that).  Everyone was making fun of me because I had slept with an eye mask on, and then put it on the top of my head when they woke us up.  It slipped up in the back and made my hair look crazy.  I just left it there.  I was too tired to care about silly things like what my hair looked like, or taking off my eye mask. 

Good morning!

We were just being silly here

My "crown"

 Because of my ear infection, the landing was particularly painful for me.  All that I could think about was how my ear drums were going to burst.  I actually felt pain in my skull just behind my ear, and I felt pain in my jaw and teeth.  How horrible that pain was!  I couldn't even eat my breakfast sandwich (which I got because they ran out of the pastry) because it hurt so bad.  I was so focused on the pain in my ears, that I kind of ignored the landing.  I have changed so much over the last several days!  It's a miracle. 

We got to spend a little bit of time in the airport in Charlotte, but not much.  It was so refreshing to go buy some American snacks with American money, with a cashier who spoke English.  Although we were still miles and miles away from Denver, we finally felt like we were home.  

We boarded the plane after only a short amount of time, and I had almost no fear or nervousness as we took off.  I knew that I was physically exhausted, but I was mentally alert during the entire flight back.  I sat next to Richard and Tyler again, but they slept for a lot of the trip back, and I played games on my phone and spent some quiet time just reflecting on our trip.

I feel guilty.  I feel like I'm supposed to come back and be crazy excited and have these awesome stories to tell.  I feel like I'm supposed to do what everyone else has done to me upon their arrival home from World Youth Days in the past:  make me feel like I missed out on something.  I feel like I did something wrong.

But the truth is, it was hard.  I know that someday I will probably forget how hard it was, and that I will remember the good stuff as being much better than it was, and the bad stuff will probably be remembered as less bad.  And that's not wrong.  I did have fun.  I did grow, and I did change.  I am not the same person now that I was when I left.  You simply cannot describe the kind of exhaustion, dehydration, and stress that we were under during this pilgrimage, and thank God for that.  We were truly in survival mode for nearly all of our time spent in Rio de Janiero.  But we got through it.

The question that seems to be on everyone's mind is, would I do it again?  Knowing everything that I know now, would I do it again?  Well, that's really difficult to say.  I know that I am changed.  And I did have some good experiences along the way.  Really good, actually.  Amazing.  From Trevor protecting our group all night during the Vigil, to Zach inviting me to their family's camping trip, to ordering pizza with the group of teens, to being so near the Pope, to not quitting when things were difficult.  I think, considering all of it, that the answer is yes, I would have done it all again.  

Yes, it would have been nice to stay in Rio de Janiero instead of Niteroi so that we didn't have to travel at least an hour and a half to get home each night, or to the event each morning.  It would have been nice to not worry so much about our safety.  It would have been nice to stay in a hotel and be guaranteed the ability to shower and brush my teeth each day.  It would have been nice to sleep in a hotel.  It would have been nice to have a transistor radio.  It would have been nice to not have rain.  But this was never "nice."  This was about suffering.  I knew that when Richard suggested we go.  That's part of the reason why I was so reluctant to say yes in the first place!

Going in, I had a lot of fear.  Besides the completely irrational fears (like the plane crashing, and a tsunami), most of my fears were legitimate.  My problem was that the only things that I could relate to from past experiences were the bad things, like being extremely tired, not liking the food, or having to use port-a-potties.  I had no idea what it was like to be in another country, or to be in such close proximity to millions of people, or to attend a papal mass, or to be on pilgrimage.  Although I tried, I really couldn't even imagine what those things were like.  It turns out that World Youth Day was exactly what I thought it would be, and nothing like what I thought it would be.  Minus the crazy fears, everything that I was afraid of came true.  However, I think that I thought that only bad things would happen, and that definitely was not true.  So much good came from this experience.  I am, after all, cured of my fear of flying almost entirely. 

The flight landed and we went one last time as a group onto a train (ok, we had previously been on buses and subways, but the train inside DIA was just like a subway on the interior) to arrive and be greeted by our families.  It was a joyful reunion on both sides.  We were happy to be home and our families were happy to have us back safely!  Mom had a Diet Coke with her for me to have!  Several teens greeted us, too!

Mom took me to eat Wendy's, which I had been craving all week!  The french fries were fresh, hot, greasy and so so so so so tastey!  The frosty was fabulous!  The spicy chicken sandwich disappeared almost immediately!  Thank God for American food!!!!!

My dog was kind of mad at me, so I didn't get the greeting from him that I expected.  He didn't want me to know that he wanted to cuddle with me.  But I cuddled with him anyway!  I know he liked it.

I got home, did my laundry, chatted with my mom for a while, unpacked and went to bed early.  It was hard to get myself to unpack the same day that I came back, exhausted as I was.  But I knew that I'd be happy that I did!

Bed time!  I can't stay up a minute longer!

 It's good to be home.  Now all of this is just a memory.  All of the work is done.  Heaven is now here.  I am grateful for the pilgrimage, because now I can look forward to Heaven.

My dog is very relieved to be home in his (my) bed.

Things that I once took for granted that I am not grateful for:
Hot shower
Clean drinking water
Sleeping in
Clean laundry
My dog
My bed
Toilets that flush and aren't extremely close to the ground
Diet Coke
America
American napkins 


I hope you enjoyed reading about my experiences with World Youth Day.  I know that we were covered in prayer while we were away.  It's amazing how much love the people back home gave us.  I hope to hear other people's World Youth Day stories soon, too!

Obrigada! 

World Youth Day - Day 11 (Beach, Ipanema, Bus to Airport)

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

We woke up at 6:15 this morning in order to eat breakfast right when the doors for breakfast opened.   The teens were determined to swim at the beach one day.  They got done eating and headed for the beach only to discover that the beach is really cold at 7:00 am.  Go figure!  None of them wanted to get in the water right away.

They made designs in the sand and finally got to swim.  I didn't want to swim because it was cold and I was tired and I didn't want to pack a wet swim suit, so I didn't swim.  I think that was a good choice.

They are so funny.  They found a dead fish and snuck up on me and scared me with it.  I was so out of it that I didn't really react at first.  I thought that it was a squirt toy!  They actually played with that dead fish for a while, too.  Gross.


It was a fun time at the beach.  

We got to go back to the hotel and shower.  I was really looking forward to a nice hot shower, but the hotel's water heater broke.  Of course.  So I had another cold shower.  But at least there was some more privacy now.  We went shopping one last time, because everybody had money to spend.  We went to one little store, and then we past the church that had the pilgrimage cross and the icon of Mary in it. There was only a small group with us at that time, but those of us who were there got to go in and get up close with the cross.  We entered the church while mass was being said, so we had to wait until the end of mass, but at the end, the priest gave us a special blessing!  The people were really excited that we were there!  It was a really special moment for sure!

The Icon of Mary

This was inside the church that had the pilgrimage cross

This was the name of the church:  Nossa Senhora da Paz

 We went back to the hotel to finish packing and check out, and as Christa and I were leaving our room, I realized that I didn't have my cell phone.  After all that time of carefully keeping it with me, I was so afraid that I'd lose it here.  Now.  In the safest place that it's been this entire journey!  But, it turned out, that my suitcase was on top of it.  So that was stupid!  I was so tired at this point.  Anything could happen!

Our entire group got to go to lunch in Ipanema, while we left our bags in the hotel to wait for the bus.  I actually ate Subway for lunch, which was quite delicious!  I also had a milk shake from McDonalds.  Yep, that's right.  Good ole' American food in Brazil!  Yum!

We went back to the church with the pilgrimage cross, so the whole group could see it.  I was amazed by a little old lady in a wheel chair who came up to me, took my hand, and tried telling me something in Portuguese.  I don't know what she said, but whatever it was, it was good!  For some reason she really loved me.  I can't tell you why!  It was a really special moment for me! 

Father Chris, goofing off outside the church with the pilgrimage cross

I just thought this tree was cool looking

The whole tree is root

I'm so tired!

We went back to the hotel.  Even though we had to check out of our rooms, they gave us permission to use the pool room upstairs, on the 17th floor.  I loved this room.  It had all sorts of windows, it looked out on Ipanema Beach, and it was just perfect.  I could have stayed up there for a long time. 

The view from the 17th floor

The view of the beach from the 17th floor

We settled in to have one last mass in Brazil, in this amazing room with this amazing view.  To be honest, I have no idea what Father Chris' homily was about, what the readings were about, or anything like that.  And it's not because they weren't interesting or good, it's just because it was so overwhelming.  Our journey was about to end.  We were in this beautiful room, with this beautiful view, with these people with whom we had come so far and suffered so much, and it was about to end.  It felt good and bad, all at the same time.  It was impossible to take it all in. 

Nate doing the readings for Mass

At the end of Mass, Father Chris acknowledged Trevor for his amazing work, protecting us during the Vigil.  It was a really beautiful moment for everyone, I think, not just Trevor.

The group presented Richard and me with a flag that they all signed, and a note, thanking us for making this trip possible.  It's hanging in the Youth Room now.  It was really sweet of everyone to do this for us! 

Our bus came to get us from the hotel, and again, I thought I lost my cell phone on the 17th floor.  It turned out that someone took it for me, but they didn't tell me right away.  

The bus seemed like it was lost.  And it hit a car.  I thought we would never get to the airport.  We had to pick up two other groups, too.  I was starting to get really worried, because I needed to get home!

We had a lot of fun on that bus ride, though.  Even though we were worried that it was taking so long (and the rumors were that after WYD, you stay in line at the airport for six hours!), we found ways to entertain ourselves.  It's amazing what a can of bug spray and a flip flop sandal can do.  We discovered one way that this trip changed us:  it made us more simple.  We were so entertained just by watching a can of bug spray roll down the aisle and over the flip flop, which maybe wouldn't have been as entertaining before.  But, who am I kidding?  It was fun! 

They were trying to get me to make my mad face, but I couldn't do it on cue!

Still trying to get my mad face

Still no mad face

Still no mad face

Still no mad face

Sand castles in the sand (Good ole' How I Met Your Mother Reference!)

Giving up on making mad face

Arriving at the airport after something like three hours on the bus was a huge relief.  The lines were not bad at all. We made it through and got to the gate rather quickly.  As we were making our way through security, I said a phrase that I thought I'd never say.  And I said it with great sincerity and enthusiasm:  "I am going to be so relieved to get on that plane!"  I said it without thinking.  It seems that World Youth Day cured me of my fear of flying!  

We bought some food at the airport (Pringles, which cost $13 American dollars!  Yikes).  I used the very last of my money buying some snack food.  Literally, I had no bills to bring home.  Oh well.  I needed that food!

We got on the plane to head home.  I ate my ravioli as quickly as possible, and fell asleep with my plate on my food tray.  When I woke up, it was gone.  I must have fallen asleep so fast and so hard that I didn't even notice when they took it.  

I still didn't sleep well on the plane, but who can?  I was excited to be heading home!

World Youth Day - Day 10 (Hotels!)

Monday, July 29, 2013

Waking up on this day was not exactly easy.  Andrea and Kim had gone to bed so early the night before, that I was unable to warn them not to wake up at be ready to go at 8:00 am, like we had originally believed would be necessary.  It turned out that we didn't have to leave until 3:00 pm.  So I got up to tell them that they could sleep longer.  

Hardly anybody was up yet, so I just went back to bed.  It was nice to sleep more, but my sleep was really restless.  Eventually I got up because other people were up and talking really loudly.  I would have been irritated by their noise, but I was kind of relieved that I wasn't the only person awake anymore.  

I talked with Richard and Christa for a little while, but I was so hungry!  We hardly ate the few days before, and we had stressed our bodies out a lot.  It was kind of nice to feel hungry, because I had lost my appetite a lot before.  I was kind of afraid that there was something wrong.  

We waited for everyone to get ready for the day, stretched, and just chatted with each other.  It was a good, relaxing, morning. 

Finally we were all ready to go find food.  We walked down to a little shop that sold some kind of sandwich thing, that everyone loved.  I didn't love it, so I didn't buy anything, but luckily it was right next to a small grocery store, so I stopped there to get some food.  I bought some Pringles, a Coke (they don't sell Diet Coke in Brazil!  Weird!) and a Kit Kat.  Breakfast of champions, I know!

We walked back to the school where we were staying and relaxed some more.  I had a nice chat with Christa.  We decided to finally pack our stuff.  It never ceases to amaze me how I can pack so nicely and perfectly before a trip, but for some reason I can't pack it at all when I'm leaving.  This trip was no different.  I hadn't even bought souveniers!  Why didn't my stuff fit?

The group sat around for a while and found ways to entertain ourselves.  We had a ball that provided a lot of entertainment.  It's amazing how simple things like a ball mean so much more after all that we had been through!

I had an interesting conversation with one of the pilgrims, who was kind of having a hard time.  I asked this person what would have made this trip worth it, and the answer surprised me.  Nothing would have made it worth it.  

That conversation left a weird feeling in me.  Granted, this was not an easy trip, but that doesn't mean that it wasn't worth it.  Of course it was worth it.  No matter where you go or what you are doing, there are going to be challenging experiences.  Things aren't going to go as planned.  You are going to have to suffer.  But you can either TRY to enjoy it, or you can just sulk about how awful it is.  For instance:  someday, I hope to get married.  And when that day comes, I know that it will be difficult.  But when it becomes difficult, I hope that I don't just sit back, pout, and give up.  And I hope that my husband doesn't either.  If you don't try to enjoy it, what's the point?

I'm not saying that I was perfect at trying to make this a positive experience.  Goodness knows that there were times when I just wanted to give up and run home.  But there were times that meant a lot to me.  Those things wouldn't have meant as much if I had just stopped trying, stopped caring.  I loved certain parts of this pilgrimage, and I will never regret going if I can keep those moments forever.  

At 3:00, our bus came to pick us up from the school (thank God that Richard thought to get a bus to get us!  Otherwise we would have had to take public transportation, with all of our luggage, for a long drive!  This was a nice treat!).  The bus took us to our hotel (thank God for hotels) called "Ipanema Plaza."  It was lovely, and I'm not just saying that because we were so desperate for beds, showers and food.  It was a naturally lovely hotel, almost right on the beach!

We signed paperwork and then went to our rooms.  The bathrooms had bidets in them, which everyone talked about later on.  

We had time in our rooms before dinner, which was something I loved so much.  Christa and I were in a room together, and when we got to our rooms, we had internet, beds, showers, and silence.  Christa and I are good friends, but we didn't talk to each other at all while we were in our rooms, and I appreciated that very much.  I think that it was the first time in days when I didn't have someone talking to me.  It was nice to have silence.  

We walked to a Tex-Mex Grill for dinner, where we met up with our Vermont friends.  It was really special to get to eat one last dinner with them.  

I didn't eat.  I did have a Pepsi, which was really good.  I think that the group was really tired of hearing me say, "I don't like that" about food items.  But the whole food situation actually caused me a lot of stress.  It was something that I just wasn't willing to give into while we were there.  Plus, the place where we ate was expensive, and I didn't have much money, and we still had another day!  Maybe, just maybe, if the menus hadn't been so poorly translated, I would have been willing to try stuff.  But there were words that I just didn't recognize, and I was afraid of what those things meant.  I just couldn't eat.

After we got back to the hotel, I learned that the teens "reversed pickpocketed" me.  I guess that some of them gave a little bit of money and had Christa slip it into my stuff, so that I could eat the next day.  It was a really sweet idea.  

We got back to the hotel and I was asleep within minutes!  It was amazing how quickly I fell asleep!  I really badly needed it, as we all did!

Thank God for beds!