Letter from Koln
I asked Selina if I could post this letter I received from her on Wednesday and she agreed.
Hey Daddy.
Now we are at an internet point in Köln, so I have a little more time to write to you than usual. Thank you for the e-mails and of course for all the blogs, which I just got caught up on. Ugh... I started crying when I read the one where you were talking about us all saying goodbye to each other (a little awkward actually, since this is a tiny room and it is packed with other people...eek). Nicole is doing the duty of blogging right now, so I feel like I'm a little bit off the hook of that and can just write to you.
Of course I will tell you all about it later, but our days of encounter were the absolute best thing in the whole world. Thank you for looking into all that and getting us thinking about it and signed up for it and everything. Even when we were getting ready for that, I never really put that much thought into what that would be like, but I think it will end up being the best part of this whole youth day event (besides the end mass of course!). We met the greatest friends EVER there, Dad... I wish you had met them all. Good times and good German beer and so much intense prayer and singing and laughing and clapping and dancing and talking in some mixture of English or German or Polish or Spanish. Our day of service barely felt like service, since Nicole and I got to go to the elderly home and be spoiled with delicious food while we chatted with the senior citizens and then performed songs for them. But when an old German woman held me in her arms with tears in her eyes and said "U-S-A" over and over (which sounded like OO ES AH.) and kissed me on the cheek, I knew that we had done our part to serve. Also, it was so good, Dad. We went to a big mass in a different town on Sunday (the church of the parish we were at was pretty small) and suddenly during the homíly they were asking that someone from each of the nations represented would come forward and say something the congregation about why we were at world youth day, what it meant to us, what we hoped to get out of it...etc. So, kind of spur of the moment, I ended up going up. We hadn't really prepared a lot, even though the American kids had discussed some of that stuff to an extent... so what I said really had to just be what was in my heart. So what I told that huge congregation was that in a time when our American government has done so much to work against peace in our world, and to divide it, country against country, that we as the American youth find it to be the most important thing that we can think of to be pilgrims to a place where we can do our small part to counteract it. We want to work in the opposite way: for peace. To unite the entire world in truth and love and justice. Dad, SO many people approached me afterwards (german people) and thanked me for my words. I didn't realize that it would mean so much just to hear me say that simple bit, but it really did, and it was so happy for me to unexpectedly have the opportunity to share what is so strongly in my heart. And for that group of people who heard me say it, they can start to forgive America a bit... not for the wrongs that are still being committed, but in terms of the people, they can begin to understand that we as Americans want the same thing as them. We are all Christian and we are indeed one body.
It is too bad that we didn't get to meet up with the fam. I already miss you guys more than I can say. The mass at Rhein Energie Stadium was great and jubilant and exciting. They said there were 150,000 there, and it seemed like so much that i can't imagine the final mass with the PAPA!! Craziness. Speaking of that, our plan as of right now, if we can work it, is this: After the final mass at Marienfield, we will take the train (still free!) to Dusseldorf, with the kids from Goslar from Days of Encounter. Then from there, they are driving back to their hometown, and I am almost positive they have room on the giant bus, so that should work. We will stay Sunday and Monday night there, either still in the church where we were before, or maybe in their houses, I don't know. They said either would be fine. Then if we can find a train from Goslar to Frankfurt early wed, we will do that, if not, we can stay a night there in hotel europa or something. We are going to buy the train ticket for nicole, because I don't think it will be more than maybe 60 euro, so we will split the cost. We haven't spent any money since we left paris, so we should be good!
Today at 16:30 we make our pilgrimage to the cathedral. Then tomorrow and Friday we have catechises. Ew. I don't know how to spell that but you know what I mean.
I love you daddy. I miss you guys. Tell the family that I love them SOOO much. WYD is the best thing on the planet, for real...
God bless.
Love,
Selina
Hey Daddy.
Now we are at an internet point in Köln, so I have a little more time to write to you than usual. Thank you for the e-mails and of course for all the blogs, which I just got caught up on. Ugh... I started crying when I read the one where you were talking about us all saying goodbye to each other (a little awkward actually, since this is a tiny room and it is packed with other people...eek). Nicole is doing the duty of blogging right now, so I feel like I'm a little bit off the hook of that and can just write to you.
Of course I will tell you all about it later, but our days of encounter were the absolute best thing in the whole world. Thank you for looking into all that and getting us thinking about it and signed up for it and everything. Even when we were getting ready for that, I never really put that much thought into what that would be like, but I think it will end up being the best part of this whole youth day event (besides the end mass of course!). We met the greatest friends EVER there, Dad... I wish you had met them all. Good times and good German beer and so much intense prayer and singing and laughing and clapping and dancing and talking in some mixture of English or German or Polish or Spanish. Our day of service barely felt like service, since Nicole and I got to go to the elderly home and be spoiled with delicious food while we chatted with the senior citizens and then performed songs for them. But when an old German woman held me in her arms with tears in her eyes and said "U-S-A" over and over (which sounded like OO ES AH.) and kissed me on the cheek, I knew that we had done our part to serve. Also, it was so good, Dad. We went to a big mass in a different town on Sunday (the church of the parish we were at was pretty small) and suddenly during the homíly they were asking that someone from each of the nations represented would come forward and say something the congregation about why we were at world youth day, what it meant to us, what we hoped to get out of it...etc. So, kind of spur of the moment, I ended up going up. We hadn't really prepared a lot, even though the American kids had discussed some of that stuff to an extent... so what I said really had to just be what was in my heart. So what I told that huge congregation was that in a time when our American government has done so much to work against peace in our world, and to divide it, country against country, that we as the American youth find it to be the most important thing that we can think of to be pilgrims to a place where we can do our small part to counteract it. We want to work in the opposite way: for peace. To unite the entire world in truth and love and justice. Dad, SO many people approached me afterwards (german people) and thanked me for my words. I didn't realize that it would mean so much just to hear me say that simple bit, but it really did, and it was so happy for me to unexpectedly have the opportunity to share what is so strongly in my heart. And for that group of people who heard me say it, they can start to forgive America a bit... not for the wrongs that are still being committed, but in terms of the people, they can begin to understand that we as Americans want the same thing as them. We are all Christian and we are indeed one body.
It is too bad that we didn't get to meet up with the fam. I already miss you guys more than I can say. The mass at Rhein Energie Stadium was great and jubilant and exciting. They said there were 150,000 there, and it seemed like so much that i can't imagine the final mass with the PAPA!! Craziness. Speaking of that, our plan as of right now, if we can work it, is this: After the final mass at Marienfield, we will take the train (still free!) to Dusseldorf, with the kids from Goslar from Days of Encounter. Then from there, they are driving back to their hometown, and I am almost positive they have room on the giant bus, so that should work. We will stay Sunday and Monday night there, either still in the church where we were before, or maybe in their houses, I don't know. They said either would be fine. Then if we can find a train from Goslar to Frankfurt early wed, we will do that, if not, we can stay a night there in hotel europa or something. We are going to buy the train ticket for nicole, because I don't think it will be more than maybe 60 euro, so we will split the cost. We haven't spent any money since we left paris, so we should be good!
Today at 16:30 we make our pilgrimage to the cathedral. Then tomorrow and Friday we have catechises. Ew. I don't know how to spell that but you know what I mean.
I love you daddy. I miss you guys. Tell the family that I love them SOOO much. WYD is the best thing on the planet, for real...
God bless.
Love,
Selina
posted by Stephan | 3:03 PM
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