This is my third attempt to journal today. April 11, 2019 - didn’t get it done. Here it is a day late - but posted! NOPE - now it is April 13th. No sense of time here!!! So much has happened since I prepared this reflection that, although it is not Fake News, it certainly feels like Old News!
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I’m on Pilgrimage into the Sacred Space of the Mountain and the Monastery, however, I have brought along my very active mind, imagination, feelings and everything else that is part of the package that is me.
This morning I hiked the EASY hike, HA HA HA - to the Cave Chapel. Legend has it that this is the place where the Black Madonna was first found by the shepherd boys. I have attached the story below. It is an article from the Internet that provides the details.
I didn’t realize how out of shape I am. It was good to do -without a walking stick - OMG! I learned a lot about me and about the Spirits that support my path. I begged for a walking stick. None was provided. I could have gone to the store to purchase one. I have done that a couple of times before. I get them home and then don’t want the hassle of the airline and the possibility of losing a Stick who has become a friend because of Security regulations regarding carrying ‘weapons’ on the plane. I am not criticizing the restriction of weapons -please don’t get me wrong. I simply don’t want to risk the loss of a dear friend who has traveled far with me, supporting me all along the way.
I had one of my several walking sticks ready to bring. As I was walking out the door, I couldn’t bear the thought of losing her.
Today one of my friends, here at the Monastery is looking for a Monk’s walking stick for me to use while I am here. The latest is that they are asking the Infirmary for a sturdy cane!!
What about you? Have you ever worried about the loss of a friend due to the rules? Rules are meant to be for our good. Have you experienced times when you questioned the rules?
What are the alternatives that you have explored to keep the rules and your friends in tact? Or maybe you simply chose to break the rules?
Today I walked without my friend and learned a lot about myself. I can walk without her support, although I enjoy and have relaxed into knowing she is with me. Fact is, her company is a joy. Her absence increases my confidence in my own ability to succeed. I don’t know if that is a universal truth. It was the truth of today. Do truths have a life span? I never thought about that before. Or is a truth, always the truth?
So much to think about, that I often miss, even in the little things.
I made friends with a mother-daughter twosome who were visiting the Monastery for 24 hours. We ate meals together. Language barrier of course. We didn’t share as much as we might if we spoke a common language, however, we came to care for each other in the short time of sign language and heart understandings, a little use of smart phone to ease up the strain of our yearning for communication. Augustine and her mother who is 90 years young left this afternoon. I will miss them.
Hmmm. Kind of like my Walking Stick friend, here for a while to enjoy and feel mutual support, and then gone.
How is it for you? Do you struggle and care, even love and then it all disappears? Do you wonder why you did it? Put so much effort into what you knew wouldn’t, couldn’t last? Will I do it again? Of course, I will. Will you?
Ponder well my friend.
I miss you too.
Much love,
Always!
Carol
The legend (Internet Source)
Montserrat is considered one of the special “power spots” of the world. Electromagnetic fields are said to be strong here, and healing powers are attributed to the small dark figure — if one touches her or the orb she holds in one hand.
So, who is the Black Madonna and how did she come to be enshrined in this mountaintop retreat cut from reluctant rock so far from significant population centers?
Her Spanish name is La Moreneta, which means “the black little one.” (In Aramaic, “black” means “sorrowful.”) She is also known as St. Mary of Montserrat, and for nearly a thousand years Benedictine monks have lived atop the mountain to welcome pilgrims to her shrine.
Montserrat as a religious site traces back to the eighth century, when hermits lived there but not as a formal religious order. Shepherds herded sheep on the nearby hills, and, according to one legend, one day in the late ninth century a bright light shining from a cave convinced them it was a spiritual sign.
The shepherds were terrified, particularly after the phenomena, accompanied by singing, was repeated several times, until a figure said to be Mary appeared and told them to go into the grotto. They did. There the fully carved statue of the Black Madonna was discovered. It is believed that the statue had been hidden in the grotto in 718 to avoid its falling into the hands of Moorish invaders.
After being contacted, Church authorities ordered that the statue be taken to Barcelona. With each step the bearers took, the heavier the half-life-sized statue became. After putting it down several times for a rest, the men realized the image should remain where it was found, on the mountain.
Talk of mysterious happenings on the mountain went from town to town. Pilgrimages followed, as did prayers and requests for favors, and, it is said, miracles occurred. Word of reported healings spread across Spain. However, the statue which sits in today’s basilica is believed by many to have been carved in the 12th century.
Photos:
Capella de la Cova:
Approaching the Cova - Cave,
Cave where first statue was found by shepherd boys.
One of the Cave windows - I like the Mountain scene in center
Replica of the Statue found here
Looking back at the Mountain - the Monastery is UP THERE. Quite a climb
Black Madonna Video inside Basilica where she is enthroned
Augustine and Mother at Lunch
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