Bonjour;
I awoke this morning to the bells from the church at around 7:30 AM. I let Susan sleep and went down stairs figuring everyone was up. Bob was on the computer and he also let BeBe sleep in. He gave me coffee and out to the patio we went where we solved the problems of the world. (at least in our minds)
BeBe finally came out so we started to make some noise hoping to rouse Susan. It didn’t work so I went up to shower and pack and make a lot of noise. Susan got the hint and she also showered and we went down for coffee. We had a great conversation again filled with some laughter and had a lite bite of cheese and fresh bread for breakfast. Not being hungry, we opted out of having eggs and ham. That was tough, but for the Brown Scapular penance, we don’t eat meat on Wed and Sat. More cheese tonight.
We loaded the car and had to prepare ourselves to say good-bye to our newfriends. There were hugs, kisses and a few tears and promises to keep intouch and return on our next trip. We put them on the e-mail list and already received mail from them. I think the logo B&B came from them. B(ob)&B(eBe).
We made our way thru the narrow mountain roads towards Garaison and were cutting it close as to whether they would be closed or not. The views from here were great and they would only get better when we approached Lourdes.
Garaison was closed when we arrived, but you can walk the grounds and visitthe apparition site and get water from the Miraculous spring. As we entered the grounds we met a man who after finding out we were American took us to the Sacristy to meet the Priest. He was very welcoming and allowed us toview the Sacristy. The woman in there then took us to the site of theapparition and departed so we could be alone.
This was a holy place, you could feel the peace and calm as it came overyou when you entered it. We lit our candle and went up to the seats andprayed our rosary with all the intentions out as we offered them up in ourprayers.
Before leaving we walked the grounds made a pit stop. Susan used the Men’s Room by mistake and a guy tried to open her door … oops! We hopped in the car and were off to Lourdes, via the mountain roads of course. We wereonly an hour away, and just before our hotel there was a supermarket, so we stopped and re-loaded. Our wine cellar had been depleted, too, at Bob & BeBe’s!
We checked in and had to change rooms. The first room was real small and the second wasn’t what we booked either, but were pilgrims and we settled for it without causing any trouble. We dropped the bags and headed off to the Grotto at Lourdes and a potential Mass. We love this place and it feels had if we have never left when we are here.
Below there is a great explanation on Lourdes and puts it’s meaning and being into a new light for us as we are sure it will for you. Please read especially those of you who are suffering.
We were shocked by how empty the town was This our 5th trip and we never saw so few people. We had no trouble walking down the busiest streets.
Out of luck for Mass, we visited Our Lady in the Grotto and said a few prayers and walked the grounds for a few minutes before returning to our hotel. We figured we would relax and maybe make the 9 PM rosary procession. It was a good thought, but we were so tired we were in bed before the procession ended.
At the hotel we worked. I worked on the past day’s report and Susan handled some real estate business that we had to address. We had a little
cheese, fruit, tomatoes, and sardines with some fresh bread and that was it.
Au Revoir
O Mary, conceived without sin,
pray for us who have recourse to thee,
and for those who do not have recourse to thee,
especially the enemies of the Church
and those recommended to thee,
Amen.
Love
Susan & Tom
