Lord I do not know what to expect...

WELCOME TO POLAND!! “Lord, I do not know what to expect, but I pray that You prepare me well and surprise me like never before.”
This was the prayer I said multiple times before and during the trip. Besides preparing physically, all I could do was to go with an expectant and open heart.
So here, right now, I am so glad to say that the Lord not only answered my prayers but multiplied the blessings and surprises by a hundredfold.
I would like to share the entire journey with you through pictures (that you will find below), but first do allow me to share a few personal highlights.

#1 PEOPLE!
We were part of the Youth Arise International (YAI) prior to the WYD proper. Although it was on a much smaller scale as compared to WYD itself, I was overwhelmed to see so many people from all over the world. Not to mention seeing so many priests celebrating a mass! It was definitely an experience on its own, and it only got bigger and better as the journey went on. We have learnt so much about different cultures and races and to come together as one through Christ is beyond beautiful.

#2 HOST FAMILIES!
We were blessed with a beautiful couple as our hosts for the entire duration of YAI. Although they could not speak much English, it was the language of love they showed that connected us. They went out of their way just to make sure that we were comfortable. So much love!! Oh and food! We were hosted for the second time during WYD itself, this time we were blessed with a lovely lady that took care of us so very well, she could speak English and it helped tons with communication. To me personally, she is God-sent, a prayer answered. We have a very special connection, our personality, interests and talents. Through her experiences and stories, it has given me inspiration and insight in regards to which path to take. The time we spent with them and the love they taught us made leaving so difficult, but the thought of having people so close like family in a place far away is absolutely beautiful and will be cherished deeply.

#3 EVANGELIZATION!
To evangelize is to offer Jesus as a gift to others. Sometimes we think that we are the only ones that have something to offer, in fact that is far from true. During the street evangelization, we met so many people with different stories and lessons to share, but I would like to share with you one encounter that stuck with me. My partner and I met this young man named Dan, he is about 20 years old. As we went up to him, we were surprised to see how interested and enthusiastic he was to have a conversation with us despite the language barrier. 10 minutes into the conversation he started to open up about his struggles and that was where I realised that no matter where we are at in life, despite the circumstances, one thing holds true. We want to love and be loved. It is so simple. So for us, what we brought back from this is that people are looking for Jesus, but they just do not know it, and it is our duty as Catholics to share this with the world.

#4 DANCE & MIME!
It was a joy to reach out to so many people through dance! Besides that, as the Mime Team ministered through the mime “You are my Father”, it was the Lord that moved so powerfully and showed Himself strong. Many were touched and some were in tears. For me, as I was doing the mime, I felt so strongly the love of our heavenly Father and was deeply moved as well. It is wonderful to see how the Lord works through art.

#5 TALKS + HOMILIES!
We sat through quite a number of talks and catechesis throughout the entire duration. We were very privileged to listen to and meet many wonderful lay speakers, priests, bishops AND THE POPE! These are some points that I took back:

“We need to be misunderstood, just as people thought the early church was crazy too, if not, you are not doing enough.” – Michelle Moran during her talk “Becoming a Missionary Disciple: Living the Great Commission”

“We come as disciples, leave as a missionary” – Michelle Moran

“Our God is NOT a payback God, He is NOT a disgusted God, He is a God of LOVE.” - Fr Robert Spitzer on the parable of the prodigal son.

“The Lord doesn’t want to remain in this beautiful city, or in cherished memories alone. He wants to enter your homes, to dwell in your daily lives: in your studies, your first years of work, your friendships and affections, your hopes and dreams. How greatly he desires that you bring all this to him in prayer! How much he hopes that, in all the “contacts” and “chats” of each day, pride of place be given to the golden thread of prayer! How much he wants his word to be able to speak to you day after day, so that you can make his Gospel your own, so that it can serve as a compass for you on the highways of life!” - Pope Francis at WYD Krakow 2016 Final Mass

To summarize things, I saw for myself how much the Lord longs to build a relationship with us, and it leads us to having better relationships with those around us. Open up yourself to the Holy Spirit and let Him surprise YOU.

Ministering through dance