Maybe if I call myself a traveler, it would be more acceptable. But I am not a traveler. I travel because of pilgrimage. On a pilgrimage, we call ourselves pilgrims.
As a pilgrim,I go because someone asked me, because I am curious, because I hear a calling.
It’s a calling from the heart.
Mexico was the first country I visited as a pilgrim to learn about Our Lady of Guadalupe through Juan Diego, a simple humble Indian.
Without Juan, the world would not know about Our Lady of Guadalupe. Today is her feast day.
This is a beautiful story of Juan gathering roses in the middle of winter using his tilma to present to the bishop of Mexico as a sign that he met Our Lady requesting a church be built in honor of her.
When Juan opened the tilma to the bishop, an imprint of a beautiful image of Our Lady appeared on the cloth.
The first sign of miracle happened when a participant was shot in the throat by an arrow during a celebration. After being placed in front of the tilma with the miraculous image of Mary , the man was healed.
Juan Diego’s imprinted cloak remained perfectly preserved at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
I think calling yourself a pilgrim is more interesting than a traveler!
Pilgrim it is then. Thank you, Kate.