In the Beginning . . .



Desert  Labyrinth at a Franciscan Retreat Center Outside of Phoenix

In this digital age of email, Facebook and Instagram, people do not send them as much as they used to, but I remember what a thrill it was as a kid to get a postcard.  Even if you did not know who it was from, or even care what it said, it was nice to look at the picture.  The messages were usually dribble, “The weather is beautiful, wish you were here” – as if they really did - or they offered some explanation of the picture on the front as if whoever sent it actually took the picture themselves.  Sometimes they would tell you all of the wonderful things they were doing and the places they had seen, while you sat at home bored out of your mind.

Yet somehow, the senders felt it was necessary for them to chronicle their vacation pilgrimages in words and pictures.

A few years ago, I served on a national board that provided grants to low income community organizing and economic development projects.  Sponsored by the US Catholic Conference of Bishops, the board was made up of Catholics from all over the country, all walks of life and all political and social positions.  There was even a Catholic Indian!  Imagine that.  Part of the meetings were dedicated to a spiritual activity.  During one of these activities, the Native American member performed a Lakota “smoking ritual” (a kind of incensing to cleanse away one’s sins and evil natures) and explained how he integrated his Native American and Catholic spirituality.  The one thing I remember was his description of the Indian’s concept of starting out as a heavenly beings on an earthly pilgrimage in contrast to the perception of the “white man’s” vision of starting out as an earthly beings on a heavenly pilgrimage.  Even though the ultimate destination is the same; what you pack and carry (and throw away), what is important to you and what you notice along your pilgrimage, is totally dependent upon where you see yourself starting from.  That vision of being a heavenly being on an earthly pilgrimage has stayed with me.  Not that I have managed to

So, after completing over half of my pilgrimage, I decided to chronicle some of the points along the way – send out a few postcards, if you will.  Thus the title of my blog, “Postcards from the Pilgrimage.”  And just like those postcards you use to receive, the message may be dribble, but you can hopefully enjoy the pictures, most of which were taken by my family and me.  Feel free to add your own comments to this digital postcard.   You won’t get them on any regular basis, so they will be a surprise, just like those postcards you got in the mail.

So in the words of Jimmy Buffet, “The weather is here, I wish you were beautiful!” 

 

Gotta go, I got places to see!