Lourdes, France

Mama Mary; Family; Baths of Lourdes; Miracles; Night Rosary Processions; Travel; Service; Pilgrims – these are some of the very few words I can use to start to describe mission.

It feels nearly impossible to find the right words to describe these 10 days.  Any words I do manage to use are consistently inadequate in capturing a week we all began as strangers and ended as family.

Forever will each team member and pilgrim be ingrained on my heart.

Instead of using words, hopefully the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words” will be able to ring true in giving you all a glimpse into what happened throughout mission.  So, here is a view of the heavenly place where I got to stay and serve.

First images of Lourdes after 36 hours of travel and about 5 hours of sleep.

Completely worth it.

Gold Crown donated by the Irish and minted from gold wedding bands of Catholic Irish women!

International Mass happens in an underground Basilica…it can hold about 25,000 people.

We had the chance to go inside the Cathedral of Notre Dame during our 5 hours in Paris on the way back to Gaming, Austria.  These are the only two photos I took…just wanted to take in the whole experience without seeing it through a phone camera.

How Lourdes will forever look in my mind.

This last picture…just an idea of some of the puzzling scenes I have encountered during my travels.  We think they are on their way back from a sporting event but…we don’t know for sure.

There are some stories to accompany mission, but the best way to tell them is in person, and I absolutely can’t wait to see you and tell them.

Out of respect for Pilgrims and their privacy,  I am not posting  any photos with them.  We had a mission photographer who was able to take so many more photos of what occurred and have received permission from pilgrims to share photos of them.  Link to come (once I receive it).

Up Next: Rome and Assisi for 10 Days…

Sam