On the Road...in the air...again!

At 6 a m. yesterday I left our Cenacle in Philadelphia to head for Mexico. Sr. Beth graciously took me to the airport. I was met at the airport in Mexico City by Don Baltazar, one of the workers at the parish in Chimalhuacan. Baltazar is more than a worker, he’s the backbone of many of the movements in the parish, and is also a member of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate, the lay branch of our religious family. A long-time resident of Chimalhuacan, he is so valuable in helping the staff understand this region. We had an interesting conversation on Mexico's War on Drugs as we braved the Mexico City traffic. When I arrived at our Cenacle here, it was after 6 p.m., almost twelve hours door to door. I’m grateful to my two “chauffeurs” for braving the traffic.

As I was heading South, Sr. Olivia was heading North. She was returning to Philadelphia from a couple of weeks in the South where among other things, she worked with our Sisters and some volunteers and did the Trinita Family Weekend. She stayed in Philadelphia only long enough to get a short night’s sleep and pick up her already packed suitcase and head to Trinita in New Hartford, CT, where she will be assisting with the summer program there for several weeks. You’ll be hearing more about the Trinita Summer Program later.

As for myself, I’m looking forward to several exciting weeks here in Mexico. On Friday evening I’ll be in Temascalapa where I worked for more than five years, with our lay group for an evening of reflection. Saturday, hopefully, will be with several young women for a “Come and Meet the Trinitarians” day. On Sunday, back in Chimalhuacan, where I’m told I will be with approximately 5,000 young adults for a retreat. The official title of the day is “A New Missionary Generation”. That should be something!! I’ve been asked to give a brief talk. Please pray for that. Next week the Sisters and I will be getting ready for the Mission Week the following week. Several young women will be joining us for a week that consists of a Bible School for children in the mornings and, you guessed it, the Trinita Family Program in the evenings. You must be thinking that Trinita Program is everywhere! Well, not quite, but it is a wonderful program, and once people know about it, they want it where they are. I’ll be sharing about that and the other programs and activities with you in the coming weeks.