Tuesday, July 1, 2008

The pilgrimage begins


As early as the 4th century A.D., there is evidence that people have travelled on pilgrimages. One of the first names of those who made these voyages of faith was Egeria. Under the protection of her prayers, the organizing committee for World Youth Day 2008 has been hard at work preparing to welcome pilgrims from all points of the world who will be arriving in Sydney next week for this now-well-established youth festival.

Very early this morning, before the sun had begun to scatter the first rays of light, a companion and I began our most recent pilgrimage. Following the example of Egeria, we have now set out for some well-deserved rest, a chance to meet some new people, and an opportunity to renew old friendships.

Throughout the next three weeks, we are on pilgrimage to the land down under. As of this writing, we have left our homes in Northern Ontario (Canada) and are in Toronto enjoying some hospitality thanks to family who are here.

We've already had an adventure of sorts. Before leaving Sudbury, the airline staff kindly checked our bags all the way to Auckland. That means that when we arrived in Toronto, we had to claim our bags and then clear US customs, but we wanted to stop in Toronto to visit here for a few hours first. Thanks to the kindness of some of the agents who were helping travellers to find their way, we are indeed home for a few hours, but first we needed to clear Canadian customs (since we were sequestered in an area of the airport considered as US territory).

We're now awaiting the next flight which will take us to San Franciso, California (USA), but before we board that flight, we'll need to clear US customs here in Toronto. I wonder what other adventures that will entail!
From San Franciso, we will cross the Pacific and land in Auckland early in the morning on Thursday of this week and then transfer to Christchurch, the capital of New Zealand.

The next few days will pass with a blur so you will excuse me if I do not have the chance to recount much about what will take place. I promise that as soon as I can, I'll continue to tell the tales of the good work God is doing in our lives and in the lives of others.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I was so surprised to see a posting from you today, complete with links to relevant information to further our knowledge. Glad you were able to see your family before flying on to San Francisco. Many prayers for a fun, relaxing and peaceful holiday.