Day 17: Double Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July from Spain!!  Of course we celebrated America's 238th birthday, even though we're outside the motherland.  In fact, Chris' goal was to, I quote, "get deported for excessive patriotism."  While he didn't achieve his goal (thank goodness!), we did...

Meet Uncle Sam along the way,

enjoy a patriotic playlist during part of our walk (complete with real spacious skies and amber waves of grain),

all the American food, 

and we even had a grill.

Most importantly, we had the whole day of pilgrimage and Mass at the end to pray for our country, her leaders, and her freedoms.  God, bless America!  America, bless the name of the Lord, accept His amazing grace, and make Him proud!

On July 4th, we also celebrate the feast of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati.  He was a young Italian man who loved his friends, loved the mountains, and loved the Lord.  His love for the Lord permeated every area of his life, to the point that he totally gave himself in whatever situation he was in--his family, the poor of Turin, his circle of friends, and beyond.  Pier Giorgio was a young man whose strength to live a life of love in the world came from a relationship of love with the Lord.  Pier Giorgio was a man of prayer with a great dedication to the rosary and daily Mass, not mention the several Catholic organizations and confraternities he joined.  He knew how precious a relationship with Jesus was, so with his whole self, through letters, words, sport, friendships, work, and prayer, he did all he could to give Jesus to others up to his dying breath at the age of 24.  We took Blessed Pier Giorgio as one of our patrons for this pilgrimage. Pray for us!

Father gave a special blessing for the pilgrims at the end of Mass--just the push and strength we'd need for the next day.  Thank You, Jesus!

+JMJ+