Final Austrian Blog

The semester in Austria has come to a close. Finals week was not too bad for me. The afternoon after I had my last final I went with Anna and Jeff to attempt the waterfall again (for Anna and I failed miserably the first time if you read my Another Moment with Anna blog about it). It was a great journey and wonderful to see it. It was much bigger than I had expected. We walked up the mountain and for much of it followed the creek that led to the waterfall. All of it was beautiful. I gasped when I turned the river bend and saw how massive it was. It was fun, especially because I was not studying 6 classes.

There was then barbecues, ultimate frisbee games, and other events for the next day or so till we left. We were posta have Mass on top of Book Mountain but it rained too much to do that. We had Mass at midnight on Thursday night and departed for the airport at 3am that morning.

It is strange to think that this tight community of 160 students will never be united in the same way that it was in Gaming. Sure, we will see each other and possibly get together, but it will never be the same. What we had there was special and unique. The bond that was formed was a special one. We like to look back at how we acted when we first got there: not looking people in the eye as you passed them in the hallway and awkward conversations in the Mensa. And now we laugh about it for it is silly to think of not paying attention to the people we know as we pass them in the Kartause or not having good times in the Mensa.

At our ending meeting they told us what to be aware of when returning to the States. We would understand everything people said around us and we might actually find it annoying. We will be able to read everything in stores and restaurants. And the occasional "Danke" will come out of our mouths instead of "Thank you." For me, I daily still say "Danke" by accident. My brother, Christopher, just laughs about it. It was different to understand everyone's conversations and it did seem loud. On one of my plane rides I thought the woman behind me would never stop talking. I don't think she did.

It is interesting to see different cultures and be consumed in one for a while that you forget the little things - or you miss the little things. For me, as everyone knows, I missed Dr Pepper and Twizzlers. I missed seeing my family and friends on a regular basis, or even talking to them at least. I missed going to a Mass entirely in English. I missed not having pork at every meal. When I got back to America the things I forgot were that I could read what everything was in a grocery store. A few days after I got back I went to a grocery store with a buddy of mine and it was wierd to know what every item was in the store instantly. I also forgot about the fast food restaurants that are everywhere, even if I don't eat at those places often. I also forgot that I didn't have to subtract 7 hours difference to talk to my brother down the hall; we are in the same time zone now. I am still forgetting that I have a phone to use, but that might be a good thing.

So I went back to home sweet Texas to see loved ones and friends. It was great to see everybody that I had to opportunity to see, although I did not see all of y'all.

For now I am back in Steubenville for a few weeks to take a Catechetics course, Content and Curriculum. I enjoyed going to Mass there again in Christ the King Chapel singing along with the strong, young voices of students.

-Holy Thursday Mass

The Tridium has begun.

I would like to make just one comment for now. As you know, at this Mass there is the foot-washing after the homily. This is my first time to celebrate a religious holiday alone and without my family. The men that volunteered to have there feet washed were one of my professors who is a doctor and some college guys (except for a small boy who followed his daddy so his small foot was washed as well).

I have always seen the foot-washing consist of men older than these men of average age 21. I could not help but think of how powerful it was that these intelligent, strong, good-looking college guys could be sitting in the front of church having their feet washed because the loved God and stood for Him with all they had. The university I go to is not a typical university. There are many stereotypes about this university, but what I think is not shown enough is the strong faith that is so humble in many of these students. These men could have been anywhere on this five day weekend (as most people are gone), but instead they were having their feet washed by a persona Christi. In their small, silent way these men stood for what they believed in what I thought, a most humble way.

-Tenebrae Service

On Wednesday I went to a Tenebrae Service in the Sacred Heart Chapel (adoration chapel) next to the Maria Throne Chapel (daily Mass). I had no idea what it was but I wanted to go anyway and see what it was.

I actually have a neat story before I talk about the service. I have been ill and on top of it one of my ears is swollen so it is straining to hear in class and my fellow peers. I had seven papers due this week, all but two of them major papers. It was becoming difficult to do my schoolwork because I would get tired so easily. I would work on my papers but by the time night came I could not stay up for I was exhausted. This had been happening for a couple weeks now, that is why I did not already have my papers done. I was getting my papers done, but at a very slow pace; I needed more time. On top of my assignments, signs were posted all around the Kartause for the Tenebrae Service. I didn't know what it was but I desired to go to it.

I needed extra time whether I could go to the service or not. To make this short, I got an extension on three of my papers, and I could have for another three, but did not need it. The thing was, I only asked an extension on one paper. The other extensions were just given by another professor. I was so grateful for then I was able to go to the Tenebrae Service, and if I got too tired working after that I could sleep and start again the next day. I ended up getting too tired to stay up so I went to sleep early. But the next day I had no school and wrote 7/12 papers, that is including the ones I got extensions on and papers that are due in the next couple weeks. Thank you, Lord for allowing this.

I praise God for giving me more time that I could pray and write my papers well instead of rushing through them. I am astounded that God made this week work so well. And, I never over-stressed through it. I just took it as it came and slept when I needed to and worked when I could.

So, the Tenebrae Service. I do not know all the theology about it or why it is done, but I can tell you what I experienced. It was set up similar to praying the Divine Office, but all pointed towards the Passion of our Lord. We sang in choirs on each side of the chapel. There were 9 candles lit on the altar and throughout the liturgy the candles were blown out by someone, except for the large middle candle. That candle represented the light of Christ. Towards the end of the service and after the Gospel reading the candle was put behind the altar and by that time all the lights were out in the Church. It was resembling Christ being gone. It only lasted for a few moments and then the candle was place back on the altar.

I am not doing justice to the service at all in explaining it in the way I did. I just do not know enough to explain it well, I apologize for that, but I am learning. The service was a good meditation with the readings and psalms that were sung or said.

- Trip to Medjugorje

After a full 24 hours of traveling by foot, train, and bus Anna Deitz, Megan Cepelenik, and I made it to Ivanka and Creso's house early that morning. We were very thankful to make it there for on the bus ride we were certain there was a circus going on in the back seats. Ivanka and Creso are so wonderful for opening their home to us and allowing us to be pilgrims there for the next seven days.

This trip was very blessed, more than I'll know I'm sure. We came there with some sort of schedule, the rest we were going to discern throughout our stay. Of course, some things did not go as planned, but everything worked out. I was given the opportunity to pray - much of it laying on my bed, but I did not mind once I realized that God's plan was for me to pray as I was sick in bed. I know my prayer was fruitful even though I was not able to be as active as Anna and Megan.

I was able to do all the activities there, since I had seven days there. I went to the evening Croatian services, confession, climbed Apparition Hill, heard two visionaries speak, shook one of the visionary's hand, Mass in English and Croatian, heard the witness of Nancy and Patrick, walked through fields, read books, and climbed Cross Mountain at four in the morning.

I apologize for not giving a day by day account of this week, but I do not feel called to do so, therefore I am not. I will say what my fondest memories of the trip were; I have two. One of them was walking through the fields to get to places - very southern country to me which I enjoyed. My fondest memory was making the commitment to walk up Cross Mountain at four in the morning. It has been said that Mary prays at the top of this mountain at 5 every morning. With one of our fellow students, Ryan, to guide us, we made it safely to the top. We prayed the rosary most of the time, but there was much time for silence and reflection. It was neat to be making such a sacrifice that early in the morning. There was nobody around and it was very peaceful. We were back down the mountain before the sun was fully up.

-Medjugorjie

On Friday I leave for another ten day trip. Guess who I'm going with. Yep, Anna. Anna Deitz, Megan Copelnik, and I will leave for Medjugorjie on Fridy. We are spending the whole ten days there.

My goal there is to pray much just like the last ten day trip. I want to pray for you. If you have any prayer intentions, PLEASE do not be afraid to send me some.

My e-mail is corbett@catholicexchange.com. Or, you can tell someone at home that you know I keep in contact with and they will let me know. I want to pray for you, please let me do that.

-Schönbrunn Palace

This weekend I had a history assignment to fulfill. I had to research a 19th century location and write a paper why it was relevant to the 19th century. I then had to visit the location and write another paper. The later is what I did this weekend. I chose the Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, with a concentration on the Congress of Vienna which took place 1814-1815 in the palace.

I took Anna with me (of course, we are attached at the hip). It was a quick trip. We traveled there, saw the palace, and came back. I toured the palace and saw some of the rooms. There are 1,441 rooms in the palace, but I was permitted to see only 22. The rooms were elegant.

One thing I will note here is that I have recently been trying to learn about a particular image. It was in this novena book I have and just recently I noticed it was in there and became curious. I was reading an article from Catholic Exchange the day before I left for Vienna and the image was in there. It is an image promoted by the Vatican (I'm not sure when, though). I'm pretty sure the same image or at least one very similar was in the Schönbrunn Palace. I'm still looking into that, though. It was neat to have just read about it and then perhaps see it.

The day went well. No Anna and Annette moments except I got pinched by a large 'bug.' Anna said it was a lobster. It didn't hurt me, physically. We arrived back at the Kartause in time to make - of course - more chocolate bananas.

-Another Moment with Anna

The weekend after my trip to Rome and Assisi I decided to hang back in beautiful Gaming to catch up on studies and enjoy Gaming more.

I promised Anna that I would go see the waterfall with her. Right outside our campus are the Alps, and there are several things that you can hike to and enjoy. You can climb the mountains, go to Book Mountain and write your name in the book at the top, see the waterfall, and other things.

Anna knew that when it actually came down to it I would rather study theology than do something else, so I had to promise her before the weekend started that I would do this with her. And sure enough, when it came time to go, I was reluctant to go because I wanted to learn more. I did go, though.

Of course, there is still snow on the ground, so we wanted to see it while it was frozen and then see it when it was melted. In the beginning, the snow wasn't too bad, just under two feet. We got closer and closer and the snow got deeper and deeper as we went up the mountain. It got above our knees and Anna started to complain. I had a goal and I wanted to reach it so we continued on. The snow got to our hips and we still hadn't made it to the waterfall. I have never walked in that much snow before for that long, and knew that the snow was actually much deeper than that we just hadn't fallen in yet. We started to get concerned and knew this was becoming a bad idea for it could be dangerous.

It was funny, though, that of all people to run into this situation it was us two. I went a little ahead of Anna to see how much farther we had to go and the snow got to my waist. That was too much for me.

So with cold legs, soggy feet (even though we both had on water-proof shoes), and our goal not reached we turned around and went back.

Towards the end of the mountain Anna got tired of walking through it and rolled the rest of the way down. I got it on video. Don't tell her I told ya'll that. We then walked the mile or so back to the Kartause to warm up and ended with our daily task - making chocolate bananas. I did not realize how cold I actually was. My legs were blue (literally) for the rest of the day; they were not warm again till the next day.

It was still fun, especially because it happened to Anna and me.

-Gaming Day 10 Mondy

Back in Home Sweet Gaming. Most people slept all day. I had rested spiritually and physically all week so I studied and enjoyed the day off since we did not have school that day. There were only three days of school that week. There are not many days left of school.

-Assisi Last Day 9 Sundy

Not bright but early at 5AM all the students received a call on their hotel phone to get up to load the buses. We left at 6 AM to head back to Gaming.

The entire trip was beautiful and blessed. My goal was to pray more. I wanted to just get lost in prayer for that opportunity is sometimes hard to find as a busy student. Most of the days did not go as planned, only a few were slightly traumatic, but it all worked out and I enjoyed whatever happened. I was able to be still and know that He was near. I don't think I picked up actual schoolwork the entire time; those ten days were for God and me alone.

-Assisi Day 8 Saturdy

This morning was to focus on the life of Saint Francis. We began with Mass right at Francis' tomb. I was the reader. From there we looked at the Basilica of Saint Francis, which was where we just had Mass. I was very drawn to the frescos on the first level of the basilica. The tour then continued, but I felt I should stay and did not want to continue being so busy with school tours. I stayed back at the Basilica to look at the frescos. The frescos were of the life of Saint Francis, that covered two of the long walls and then the front of the Church. The school gave us a paper stating a fragment of information about each of them. I was still thirsting for more so I went and bought a book about each of the frescos. I spent most of the rest of the morning there. After lunch I came back and spent the entire afternoon there reading the book and studying the frescos. They are so interesting and have so much detail in each of them. Right before I arrived in Assisi I had just finished a book on Francis so he was current in my mind. I read the entire book I had bought that day. When I had bought the book I also bought a rosary. It came to be 3:00 Pm and I wanted to pray, but not without the rosary blessed. I went to a monk that was there, but he did not speak English.
I said "Pater?" He said, "Bless?" I smiled big and nodded yes. He said a long prayer-I believe to be in Italian- and then blessed my rosary. I went straight to a pew and prayed a Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Then I got up and continued my study on the life of Saint Francis.

When I get back, I am willing to show the frescos copies that I have and explain the significance of each them to anybody who wants to know. I am a visual learner, so it helps me to see images and connect them in my mind that way.

That was a great day for me. I stayed in one church the entire day. I prayed as I studied and just soaked up as much as I could, just like I felt God was calling me to do that day.

That evening we had Sunday Mass for the next day was to be a travel day.

-Assisi Day 7 Fridy

On Friday we had Mass at San Rufino. You could see the remains of the Church before it was re-built under some glass paneling. After Mass we were able to see a cave where Saint Francis liked to pray in. I really like praying there. I tried to go back there later in the trip but I was not able to. I think we had special access at that time, which I was grateful for.

I have some great news to tell you. This whole morning the tour was to be devoted to the life of Saint Clare. I have already been wanting to learn more about her. The night before I checked my e-mail and received one from my school saying that I have received the Resident Assistant position for Clare Hall for the next academic year. What was a neat addition to that was the next morning (this day I am telling you about right now) was focused just on Saint Clare. It was a great opportunity for me to thank her, learn about her, and ask for her intercession. I saw the Basilica of Saint Clare, the clothes of Francis and Clare, breviary of Francis, and the actual San Damiano Cross. That was wonderful to see in person. We then walked down to the convent were she lived and died. I saw the dormitory where her earthly life ended. I also saw the refectory, chapel, courtyard, and a large crucifix.

Lunch time.

Then we had a pilgrimage walk from our residence to Francis hermitage. That was a neat walk. Just when I was about to give up, for at one point it became difficult, a man that I knew walked by and asked to carry my bag. I let him. I am very grateful for that.

That night we had a Steubie-style Praise and Worship at Santa Maria Sopra Minerva Church. It is good to pray in community.

-Rome Day 6 Thursdy

We left Rome to drive to Assisi early on Thursday after I had one last cup of their delicious cappuccino. By the end of the morning we had made it to the outside of Assisi and visited the Portiuncula. That was neat.

From there we went to Assisi and had time to ourselves till Mass that evening. I took a nap. It was a good nap. I went to Mass at Chiesa Nuova. Then it was dinner time and the bed time. As my dad still says, "Big day tommorra," so I went to sleep in order to have a good start for the next day.

-Rome Day 5 Wednesdy

On Wednesday, my schedule was once again thrown off a bit because I woke up late - which is not like me but happened for some reason. However, I was still able to make it to another school tour that began promptly at 8 AM starting in the Vatican. This tour was four hours long and we covered many places. I went to Castel Sant' Angelo, Via Corona, Piazza Navona, Chiesa Luigi in Francese, St. Agostino, Pantheon, Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, Trevi Fountain, Capuchin Franciscan Bone yard Church, and Santa Maria della Vittoria.

I will mention a few that stuck out to me. At Santa Maria Sopra Minerva I saw Saint Catherine of Siena's body. I was not expecting this at all; it was not till I was in front of her that I even knew that she was in this church. Several years back Father John gave me a book to read about her and since then she has been special to me. In the same Church was a small shrine perhaps dedicated to Saint Rita. There were many frescoes of her. My devotion to her has been slowly increasing; it's not something I was looking for it has just happened. I have a small statue of her sitting on my desk next to my computer right now. This shrine was neat because it is sort of rare to see Saint Rita around, especially if you don't know much about her. I've read several things about her and things of that sort. It was neat to see the frescoes because I noticed things there that would have only been noticed by reading about her. For instance, why there were bees around her head when she was born, which was visible in the fresco.

The history of the Pantheon from a pagan place to now a Catholic Church was really neat. It was also interesting how the top of it was still open, so snow and rain still came through it.

Another thing that was neat was Berini's Saint Teresa of Avilla in Ecstasy. This was a neat statue, all white and much detail, in my opinion. I was only able to see it for a few moments, but it was neat.

After that it was free time till another tour in the afternoon. I wanted alone time after seeing that many places with so many people in such a short amount of time. So guess where I went - the Vatican of course. I sat outside and ate my lunch, said the Liturgy of the Hours, and just enjoyed being.

At 3 pm we met at Santa Scala to ascend the holy stairs on our knees. I prayed much during that. We then had Mass at Saint John Lateran. Instead of going back to dinner with the school, Rebecca and I were posta meet up with Paul for dinner. We ended up not finding the place, sad, and ate elsewhere. This was to be our last night in Rome, so we decided to go back to the Vatican (I just couldn't get enough of it) to see it at night.

We sat on the Vatican's left arm as I tried to care for my weak feet as we prayed and sang aloud a litany of saints. This litany consisted of any saints that we could think of, so it was long and beautiful. As we were praying we heard more singing, and thought it would be funny if it were students from our campus. We quickly decided it wasn't but thought that some of them really looked like our students. Then they sang a particular song and it was quickly identified as Frannies singing. As the typical Frannie thing, we joined them the moment we heard. We joined them at the center of the Vatican, by the obelisk.

This was incredible. Others started to gather. It was a very large crowd. Richard, a pre-theologate student, had brought his guitar and we just sang and praised the Lord together. The interesting thing was no one had planned to do this, I don't think. There just happened to be people walking around, even our students, and we just joined up. We didn't have to ask questions, we just sang. We all have the same goal, we didn't need to speak to each other. There were also some seminarians there and a priest that would be coming to America to talk at some of the Steubenville conferences this summer. We did not plan to meet him, it was just good timing. He prayed over anybody who wanted to receive prayer. This night was very powerful for many people.

-Rome Day 4 Tuesdy

This day started off by going to the Vatican in order to participate in the Scavi Tour. This took place underneath the Vatican where many tombs were. I saw a box of remains of Saint Peter's body. There was also a significant Christian mosaic there. These tombs were place here before the Vatican was there but also during a pagan time, so the Christian mosaic was a rare find. I also saw a sarcophagus that was Christian and pagan; the tour guide pointed out how we could tell this. I also saw part of the original pillar of the original basilica, before the Saint Peter's Basilica that we know of now was built over it. After that I saw the tomb of Saint Peter. The actual tomb! Saint Peter's material remains are in there! It was such an honor to stand there in his presence, asking for his intercession and praying for the Church.

After the tour was finished, I saw the tombs of John Paul II, Pius XII, and Pius X. From then I had time to myself till a tour that afternoon so I prayed in the adoration chapel and spent some time in the basilica. I accidently stayed for a Mass, again - that seems to happen to me quite often, I'm praying and a Mass starts and I'm oblivious to it.

That afternoon was a tour of Saint Peter by some of the seminarians from the North American College. During that tour our good friend Paul Kolker came and met up with Rebecca and I. Many of you know Paul; he is from our diocese and is in is second year studying as a seminarian at the NAC. He took us to a coffee shop and spoke Italian to them. I was impressed to hear him speak Italian, for he didn't know any Italian before he came to school here. It was great to see Paul and hear how he was doing.

By the way, the weather was wonderful the entire time, except it did rain much. As I am writing this, it is snowing cats and dogs out my Gaming window.

That evening we went to Mass at Saint Paul Basilica in another part of Rome. This Church was different . In the inside, there were portraits surrounding the Church of all the popes. That was so neat to see. I wish I coulda taken photos of them all, but I did not take any. After that was the usual dinner at the hotel with the school. I was not able to make it to adoration with the school that night because I was in search for a pharmacy with Ryan and Anna; however, we had a great time and ended up meeting with two Mormons from America on the road. They helped us out and it was neat to speak with them; I have never spoke with Mormons before so it was interesting to hear what they had to say.

-Rome Day 3 Mondy

This day was an experience I will never forget. I went everywhere I had planned not to go. That does not mean it was a bad day, though, just very different from what I had expected.

All I had wanted to do was to go to the Vatican and pray. I just wanted to be there and spend time there, as from my previous blog ya'll could imagine why I would have that desire. I made it there and my friend Anna slipped and fell on the stairs of the Vatican and hit her head very hard. She had on the wrong shoes because I was going to tape her feet so she could wear the appropriate shoes, but before that happened she fell. We went to find medical tape for it, but after we had done that her feet were too swollen to fit in regular shoes. For the NEXT 8 HOURS of the day we walked around Rome trying to find sandals for her to wear. This seems like it would be a quick task. There were shoe stores everywhere, just not the shoes that had no backs to them. So basically Anna and I saw what we felt like all of Rome in the non-touristy areas. It was still a neat day, though. I had planned to pray, so I still could as I walked through the city. I still saw new parts of Rome, just not the parts I had planned. We walked probably 10-15 miles that day. We did find her shoes at the end of the day; but by that time my feet needed help for I did not plan to walk that much. The rest of the week I was taping my feet just like the good ol' Crossroads days.

Before that Anna and I did not know each other very well. Since that day we have been together almost every day and do many things together. People tease that we are attached at the hip.

-Rome Day 2 Sundy

L to R: Eden Wolf, Dan Devine, Annette Corbett, Grace Wilson, Rebecca Wunderlick, Jeff Pomeisl,

Corey Tufford(those that went to Honduras know him), Ben Cahill, Teresa, and Jessica Kozlowski

As I said previously, I did not go to the Vatican, but that was the only thing I wanted to see the whole trip. Today was the day that I was able to see Mother Church. I got off the metro with some students and was praying the rosary. I knew we were walking to the Vatican, but I did not know where exactly it was. As I was praying the fourth glorious mystery, I stepped into the arms of Mother Church. There I was, surrounded by the saints, angels, and our Lord.

This is what I've been living for and thinking about since I was a little girl. Reflecting on when I was a child, I used to line up my dolls and play monopoly when there was no one to play with. It was my dolls and me, and God that would play monopoly. No joke. And I knew He did lots of other things, so I would tell Him when it was His turn. What I'm getting at is even as a child, even though it was a very much imperfect desire and still is, I would try to think of God as a whole, and when I was older and understood the Church, the Church as a whole. There I was standing in the Vatican, in the arms of Mother Church, seeing what I had known about, but never thinking that a small town country girl would be given this opportunity. Standing where so many other pilgrims had traveled - many alone on foot- to go where they knew the truth was, and knew the importance of it.

I finally made it home. I thought I had known what God's plan was for me, but as you know, being in Europe was the farthest from my mind. It was not even an option. Little Annette doesn't do things like that. But God is so much bigger and wanted me to see His Church. When I become a catechist in a year, He wants me to know His Church and the truth so that is way I am able to evangelize and catechize like apostles and St. Peter, whose sarcophagus is under the altar in St. Peter Basilica. "Upon this rock I will build my Church."

So I finished my rosary and was then able to look at the Vatican. Statues of saints surrounded the top of the Vatican. St. Peter's Basilica is enormous.

- Rome Day 1 Saturdy

I have crossed the half-way point in my journey through Europe . . . kinda feel funny about that.

I recently arrived back to the Kartause from my ten day pilgrimage in Rome and Assisi. I experienced so much and in so many ways. It was a great pilgrimage, very grace filled. If I can get it all worked out, I will post one day each day about my trip rather than trying to put ten days in a long blog. I know I will not be able to say everything that happened or be able to express it properly, but I will do my best

So Day One.

We arrived in Rome that morning by traveling through the night by bus. I usually sit on the bus with Rebecca on trips - her and I have a good system for that - but it did not work out that way. It was still a good night, though. At Hotel Gelsomino, I was on the fourth floor. I very much enjoyed the view. In the distance I could see and hear hens and roosters - it was a taste of home.

It was free time till Mass that evening so I went with my friend, Anna, to "conquer Rome" as was a joke between her and I. Anna went to Rome about five years ago so she was familiar with Rome. Knowing that we would be at the Vatican the next day, she took me to some other things. She took me to the Spanish steps. Many people hand there and at night young people tend to hang there. Anna told me some funny stories about her previous trip. We went to the Trevi Fountain; later in the trip I learned that about 3,000€ is put in the fountain a day, and it is given to the poor. And before that a man used to collect money from the fountain every night and they thought he was a government worker - but he was not.

After that it was time to meet up with Anna's friend, Collin, who is studying in Rome this year. We met at the Pantheon and then he took us around and showed us some cultural things.

As a group, we ate dinner together every night at our hotel. I really enjoyed that. Just to be with other students and leaders and to hear about what they did during the day. I also enjoyed it because I was able to talk more with the students and get to know them better because sometimes that is difficult when we are all studying. That particular night was not as enjoyable for I got sick, but I still enjoyed the night.

Overall, it was a good day to relax, recover from the long bus ride, and prepare for the spiritual journey that was to take place the next days.

What you won't find in Texas

I'm dreaming of a white ­Christmas...I mean Lent...

Things you won't find in Texas:

I never thought the reason volleyball would be canceled is because of a snow avalanche. Sounds like 'a dog ate my homework' excuse.

The tractor that you see in the courtyard is a big tractor. It takes two of them a lengthy amount of time to clear it so we don't get swallowed walking to Mass. And for much of the picture you cannot see the first floor of the monastery, it's covered because the snow piles and snow avalanches have covered it up!

Praise Him; my midterms are finished and I'm still alive. I just slept for twelve hours straight since I only slept two hours the night before.

I enjoyed my midterms. Since my majors are Catechetics and Theology, most exams for these subjects are made up of several essays or short answers. This forces one to articulate the theology so that one can catechize correctly; because it is easy to memorize, but to write or say it back in your own words can be quite difficult. So I spent this week writing many essays in small amounts of time about God. How cool is that! What will be even cooler is if I make good grades on all of them! Either way, praise Him. At this point (actually, since the very beginning), it is only His will to be done.

- Study weekend

I stayed in Gaming this weekend so I could study hard for my midterms this week, as you can see in the picture. It was a nice weekend. I enjoy watching what people do when they are here. There is a different dynamic living with men, so sometimes they become boys and do boy things. There always seems to be a dance party in the tea kitchen right across the hall from me. This weekend there was an official dance and everyone had to dress up in twos of some kind of character or something of that sort. I didn't go - I studied - but I did stop by and visit and help some of the girls get ready. At one point my room was filled with girls trying to figure out what to wear.

The studying has gone pretty well this weekend. A big plus to it is I really enjoy it, because it is all Theology midterms: Christian Spirituality, Theology of the Church, and Moral Theology. I think I might be the only one here enjoying studying all weekend, but that's fine with me.



















So for the second picture, that is a balcony right out my window, and the snow has covered it. In the background is the part of the monastery and the church that I go to Mass to everyday. I haven't been to it yet, but in one of the snow piles, some people built or dug an igloo, but you have to slide to get in. They put holes in the walls and put candles in it to light it up. Last night after the dance they had an igloo party and fit around 20 people in it, so they say. That's a big igloo, bigger than the one Alexandra and Christopher made last year - but with Texas snow.

This Fridy I leave for Rome and Assisi for ten days. It's a school trip.

-Updated

It snowed last night. The snow is up to my waist when I walked outside! I never knew that could happen! I stood in it, it was fun. The snow piles are higher than me. Father John, you might be right about there being ten feet of snow . . .

Finally, I am up-to-date on my weekends. If you look to the right of the screen and scroll down a bit, you will be able to see the blogs and click on the one you have not read, since I posted several at a time this time.

I feel I put so little on these blogs. There is so much to show and tell (Christopher, pun intended) so it makes it difficult to shorten it to a quick blog. When I'm back in Texas I'll be able to share more.

I really want to thank all of you who are supporting me, support in all ways. Coming to Austria was the farthest thing from my mind when I found out I was going. I am so grateful to be here, to experience and see these things. It's hard to find words and time to describe all that I've seen and done. The travels are wonderful, and I enjoy being able to continue studying what I've wanted to study for so long. I'm learning so much at school and on the weekends. Thank you.

-Polska

Niech będzie pochwalony Jezus Chrystus!

Before you continue reading, I want to say that so many things happened this weekend. I saw and did so many things. I will not come even sort of close to saying everything I did this weekend, otherwise this would be many pages long; however, I will touch on a few things.

We arrived at Czestoshowa
Got there 15 till 6am and made it to the shrine to see the unveiling of Our lady of Czestochowa. At 6am, there were loud trumpets and she was unveiled slowly. It was a big deal. We left right after for breakfast, but came back as soon as we were done. We had some spare time before Mass to see the shrine and pray. I could say so many things, but I will share just one experience. In one of the smaller parts, but definitely not less elaborate, was where Our Lady of Czestochowa was kept. Starting on te back left you could see railing a few feet wide that was lined around three sides of the chapel, including behind the altar. Behind/above the altar was where Our Lady was kept. The tradition of the people was to crawl on their knees praying or saying rosaries. Even older ladies crawled for our Lord and Lady. Students could choose to do the same. I did. It was very powerful to do this. I was forced to be on my knees at a slow pace. There was a lot of time for reflection and prayer. When you get past the altar it is a sort of hallway and our lady is right on the other side of one of the awlls, visible on the other side, just not behind it. We were able to stop there and pray for a few moments. I prayed for specific things as well as my parish family, just like Deacon Palms told me to wherever I went. In general, it is not easy to do that on your knees; it is a hard floor. For me it was a little difficult for I hurt my knee when I was skiing a few weeks ago (Momma, do not worry, I will be fine) so it swells just a little when I kneel too long, but that was more of a sacrifice and help me to focus not on my self, but Our Lord and what He wants.

After Mass, we drove to Auschwitch and Birkenau to see the concentration camps. I realize that children read what I write; therefore, I will not discuss details about this experience. I will say that it was very powerful and much different seeing this in person, rather than reading history books about it. Awful.

On Saturday we spent the day in Krakow, first having a tour by Polish tour guides starting at the Cathedral and ending in the main square. We then had free time on our own. I went to a Franciscan Church where John Paul II prayed daily as a bishop. I knelt right where he knelt, and I prayed where he prayed. Seth, John Paul II sat one pew in front where you sit.

After that, I was fortunate and so grateful to get some time to myself for a few hours. I sort of accidently got separated from my group. I wanted to do different things from them anyways, so it was alright. I enjoy being with others, but it was really nice to be allowed to be quiet and not have to talk. In the Kartause, it is very difficult to be alone and I was ready for time with just God and me - for an extended period of time with no interruptions. It was good to walk around Krakow. I went to several churches and was able to go to a crypt in one of them and see a tomb of a bishop in the 1600s as well as other tombs.

On Saturday afternoon we went to the Divine Mercy Shrine and saw the image that Saint Faustina saw. The painting was incredible to see in person.

On Sunday we went to High latin Mass in the Cathedral in Krakow. After that we headed to Wadowice, the birthplace of John Paul II. It was a privledge to be here.

It was cold in Poland. It snowed almost the entire time. My hair froze twice - that was a new experience.

-Praha

Last weekend I went to Prague and had a really neat time. This was our first time to travel without the school, so there were bumps along the road, but it all worked out. I went with a seminarian, Brian, two preo-theologate students, Ben (he was the one who taught me how to ski) and Jeff, and Rebecca Wunderlick. We stayed at the Arpacay hostel.

In the picture from left to right: Ben, Brian, Jeff, Rebecca, and me. We ate dinner one night at Puskins. I had spaghetti. The painting you see in the picture is Puskin himself.
We did not have any definite plans on Friday so we basically walked around and went to different things. We made our way near Old Town Square and then went across the Charles Bridge. We then walked up the castle, finding St. Vitus Cathedral with an adoration chapel off to the side. There was Mass there that night so we said the stations before it and went to Mass there in another language(I would tell you which language, but I do not know which one it was). The castle had a great view and the Church was beautiful. After that we went down the hill to find the men something to eat. We found a bakery. At that time we were at Old Time Square and there were churches and surrounding shops around it. So we did some walking there.

This statue is Saint John Nepomucene on Charles Bridge. The five stars around his head represent five letters in latin which say "I do not confess." He would not reveal what he was told in confession, because of the seal of the confessional. He is considered the first martyr for this. He was thrown off Charles Bridge.

On Saturday we planned to meet Father Martin at Wenseclas Square so he could show us the city. He took us to different churches and told really neat stories. He took us up to the castle and told neat things there as well. He told us that in the Carmelite monastery there, there is an incorrupt nun still sitting where she died. He brought us there to show us the monastery, but we could not get in. That's okay.

Joanna Gallegos, this image is for you. It is Saint Joanna at Saint Vitus Cathedral.

Finally we were able to go see the Infant of Prague. I had been looking forward to that all weekend. This was very interesting to me. I had no idea what to expect. I wasn't sure what I was going to see or what it was going to be like. I went in and began to look for the Infant. He was directly in the front. I wasn't even sure how big he would be, I was thinking rather large. Finally, I spotted him to the left. It was an infant, as you would imagine. He is tiny, much smaller than I imagined. After I had contemplated this after a while, I realized he was just the right size. And to gaze upon this Infant. It was this infant that saved us. This small child with little hands, small eyes, and a tiny mouth.

We had Sunday Mass at this church, Our Lady Victorius, celebrated by Father Martin.