Sunday, July 13, 2008

Timeline for Tomorrow

My best-laid plans for tomorrow:

* Arise at 6am, but leave breakfast till after Mass; instead, get praying and get ready!

* Get to the Pro-Cathedral early, for the 7.45am Low Mass, which will be of St Bonventure, O.F.M., Bp, Conf. & Dr, with second collect &c. for pilgrims (with luck, I may serve), with the Blessing of Pilgrims (see this post, and this one) at the altar rails after Mass.

* Pray after Mass with the others, then join Fr and the usual suspects for a cooked breakfast at one of the nearby cafés (Shiraz, probably).

* Drive home via the Seminary, in order to buy from the secretary there some of the leftover WYD apparel.

* Spend the rest of the morning packing.

* Be ready and waiting to depart when George comes round to give me a lift to the airport at 2pm.

* Meet up with my fellow pilgrims at the airport, and board the plane for takeoff at 4.15pm.

* Spend the 4 hour flight reading something pious (e.g.the Breviary) as well as talking to fellow pilgrims, etc.

* Arrive at Sydney airport at 10.15pm, get my luggage, and get a lift to Drummoyne with Fr Rowe, whose brother is going to pick us up.

* Arrive at St Mark's, Drummoyne, sometime around 11pm, and hopefully find my host family waiting to take me in!

* Go with them to their home, thank them for their patience and kindness as best I can, and get to bed.

I'm planning to take only four† books with me: my Missal (an old and battered 1954 St Andrew Daily Missal, crammed full of holy cards, notes and devotions, that belonged to the mother of a old friend of mine), my Breviaries (Vol. I with the Vulgate Psalter, Vol. II with the Propers), and - to read pro pia devotione - Where the Spirit Breathes, by Fr Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus, O.C.D., whose cause has been commenced, given me by Mother Stephanie of the Launceston Carmel in 2000, which I have never finished for some reason to do with spiritual sloth, and now wish to reread in toto.

†Oh, and I'll also bring my pocket Confraternity New Testament, which I have literally at my right elbow at my desk.

2 comments:

Joshua said...

Well, I did sleep in a little... but got to Mass, finished off Matins, and after the Blessing of Pilgrims said Lauds, Prime and Terce.

Fr, George, Linda, Rosemary, Aaron and I had breakfast, and now we've all scattered in order to get our final preparations done.

Anonymous said...

Hello Joshua,

Sounds like fun, we hope you all have a safe trip and meet the Pope and enjoy the whole experience. Look out for those guitar-wielding Neocatechumenals!

God Bless for you all,
Biddles