WYD-Body, mind and soul experience Part 3

WYD-Body, mind and soul experience Part 3

PILGRIMAGE AND ORGANISATION.

What sort of personality are you? Are you 

·                 an organised type, preparing well ahead of time, or a last-minute stress type- running around at the last-minute expecting others to help you.

·                     able to get to an appointment ahead of time or running late for everything you do.

·                     Able to cope/adjust to changed plans 

·                     feel comfortable/uncomfortable in a crowd-prefer own physical space or able to feel safe in a squeeze.

·                     have any special needs mentally-particularly any fear of crowds or claustrophobia.

These are important questions to ask yourself in relation to WYD, because you will need to find a group that suits your personality.  Now is the time to start that search. Find the group that suits your needs.

·                     Ask questions and monitor the responses.

·        observe closely behaviours of group leaders, since this will give you valuable information.  

·                     Observe if meetings are held on time/finish on time.

·                     What is the overall tone of these meetings how well prepared are they?

·                     What is the group dynamic - is there someone who is attending that would drive you 'nuts' especially when you are tired.

My advice from my experience of 2 WYD is 'beware of a group who

1.            constantly reminds pilgrims that they are on a pilgrimage as the excuse for inappropriate and lack of organization. 

2.            demonstrates disorganization before it leaves its own country and familiar surroundings.  

3.            Encourages pilgrims with mental disabilities to attend without   appropriate support.

4.            Has made little or no effort to provide a cohesive group by different activities before leaving its own country.

As you prepare yourself physically and spiritually, you also need to prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for WYD. People inevitably have some sort of a meltdown during WYD- it is a wonderful but exhausting week. By the end of the week, people are running on reserves if they have prepared themselves or empty if they have not.  The parable of the 5 wise and 5 foolish virgins is so appropriate in this context.

So now here is the WYD challenge for this week How can I prepare mentally?

1. Monitor your emotions especially when you are tired- how do you react to something you do not like?

2. Test yourself in a crowd and see how you feel when your personal space feels violated.  This is particularly important for pilgrims coming from countries such as Australia, where open space and freedom is the norm.

3. Write down in your journal what behaviours you find irritating, intolerable and  rude in yourself and in others.

5. Work out your mental strategies to overcome these.  Test your strategies and revise as required.

WYD is a wonderful event provided as a prospective pilgrim you are prepared-

You have now just 12 months to go. 

Prepare physically,

Prepare mentally and emotionally,

  Prepare spiritually.