Cottage Pie Fun by Olivia (a pilgrim)
Our team of pilgrims from Charlotte N.C. are a fun and good hearted group with a passion for making life fun. Our day was filled with a proper blend of exploration, adventure, and wonder. These are the qualities that make a great pilgrimage. Today’s journey is outlined by one of the pilgrims and gives you a picture of what our third day was like.
After breakfast we packed our lunch for the day and headed over to the chapel in the youth village where we are staying on the grounds of the Monastery. We shared some cool stories about community service and then had a tour of the Monastery established by the Dominican priests along time ago. On the tour we visited the prayer gardens and the grave yard where all the monks are buried. We also saw Dominic’s well. We finished our tour by gathering together in the room where all the monks do their morning prayers. We broke into groups and served the monastery by doing service projects around the grounds.
In the afternoon we went to the city of Athenry to visit a Norman Castle. We walked around the city and went to the grocery store to buy our supplies for Stone Soup. Over the next three days we will have a contest between our three groups to see who can cook the best meal as a team on a limited budget. We ended our time in Athenry at an old Abbey from the 1400s. We spent some time there journaling about how we would like to be remembered in this life. We came home to the Monastery to rest a bit while the first group made cottage pie for dinner. It was shepherds pie with beef instead of lamb. We ended our evening with a time of prayer and reflection around the 14 stations of the cross. After wards we played capture the flag and went to bed. I know everyone misses you at home.
As this group of pilgrims walk together, they are finding thin places where heaven and earth seem to collide, allowing them to glimpse the other side. I can see the group growing closer in authentic community. These are moments of wonder that we are experiencing every day.