Pilgrims Journal: Day 2? erh 3?

EDITOR'S NOTE: ORIGINALLY SCRIBED EARLIER IN THE DAY, BUT NOT POSTED UNTIL NOW BECAUSE THE COMPUTER WAS BUGGIN'
Australian Time: Saturday, July 12th, 2008 about 6:45am
For all intents and purposes I am going to stick with it as day 2, although we did lose a day with the plane ride and time zone stuff. Yes, that's right we got on a plane on Thursday and exited the same plane on a Saturday... So qwheird.

I am currently sitting on a bench near customs, while Eddie tunes his guitar, and Angela goes to see if the toilets really swirl the other way.

Let's see. How was the plane ride? Eh, long. True Statement. The three of us sat relatively close to each other. Angela and Eddie actually were able to sit next to each other. I would say about 90% of the travelers were headed to WYD. There was a flight attendant who even gave a Papal shoutout. I was blessed to sit next to someone who wasn't a WYD pilgrim. He was actually heading to Australia from Boston to study abroad for a year (sidenote: I know, Boston? strange... right?). It was cool to break down WYD to him and share a little bit of my faith. He had no clue why there were so many people dressed a like on the plane wearing neon colored shirts or orange outback hats. He was surprised and excited to hear that the Pope was coming into town.

For part of the plane ride I was reading Chesterton's Orthodoxy and I had a beautiful revelation about another great thing about being Catholic:

"... the cross, though it has at its heart a collision and a contradiction, can extend its four arms forever without altering its shape. Because it has a paradox in its centre it can grow without changing... The cross opens its arms to the four winds; it is a signpost for free travelers."

*input journey background music: so now I come to you with open arms...

See, although it would have been cool to share my excitement about WYD and maybe share plans if I had sat next to another pilgrim this situation was filled with grace as well. It was a nice opportunity to share my faith in a way that I wouldn't have been able to sitting next to a fellow pilgrim. In the coming weeks I will be surrounded by more than a million Catholic faithful. For 13+ hours I sat next to someone who wasn't. I was able to share my faith openly, answer his questions openly... and it was good times. To the ends of the earth, right?


Well I am not sure what is planned for the day. We meet Eddie's cousin in a little bit, and she apparently has some plans for us.

G'day, and that's it for now, stay tuned for a post from our 4th pilgrim.

AMDG.

p.s. Angela came back dissapointed and said the toilet flushed straight down. We'll have to check later on.