Via Podiensis: Blessing and Scramble
Yesterday I received the traditional pilgrim blessing at my parish of Saint Patrick from our pastor Rev. David Mulholland on the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
This was the first time I received this blessing from the same person twice, which probably says quite a lot about the number of parish transitions we’ve been through over the past decade.
Francine and I consider the Assumption to be our “Catholic anniversary”, since it was on that day in 2004 that we walked together into Saint Patrick church and began the process of her reversion and my conversion. I thought it an auspicious day to begin this latest adventure.
Immediately following the blessing yesterday, Francine and I dashed to the airport so I could catch my flight, first to London Heathrow and then to Lyon. Unfortunately, the flight to London was delayed by almost an hour, which made catching the connecting flight a challenge.
Picture me running pell-mell through Heathrow Airport with a full Camino pack on my back.
In the event, I missed the connecting flight by less than a minute. This threw my entire schedule into disarray, because I expected to catch a train at the other end of that flight.
I’m now on standby for a flight about 5 1/2 hours after the one I planned on taking. Just part of the adventure!
I’m going to hold off rebooking my train until I am sure I’m on the flight.
Date: 16 August 2023
Place: London Heathrow
Today’s Photos!
This last photo is after running across the airport