Words by Carmela Dioko
Photos by Bea Cabauatan
Four plane rides, 20 hours in the air, and approximately 16,930 kilometers traveled. The Kalfi-Narra delegation to the World Youth Day 2019 in Panama went halfway across the globe to join the Pope in this completely life-changing, surreal and unforgettable experience. This was my dream I never thought would come true. Back when I was in Grade 7, I learned and heard stories about the World Youth Day 2016 in Krakow, Poland. How the delegates reminisced their experience so joyfully and wistfully sparked a fire in me. This blazing desire to go to another country, another continent, and to be united with Catholic youth from every corner of the world and of course with the beloved Holy Father grew and grew. As my eighth-grade year was ending, I learned a delegation was to be sent to Panama for the next World Youth Day. I still remember when I asked my parents about it. To this day, I still cannot believe that I, a 15-year-old Grade 9 student, along with two teachers, a few moms, and several other schoolmates, represented the Philippines in the World Youth Day 2019. This experience is too wonderful not to be shared – from the little daily mishaps to the moving and inspiring messages of Pope Francis.
First, we traveled to Mexico (with a stopover in Japan), the home of La Virgen de Guadalupe. As we rode across the walkalator, we looked up at Our Lady’s beautiful image, and we could not help but tear up and cry. Although our main purpose was to hear mass and make a pilgrimage, we were also able to try authentic Mexican tacos and street food. The next day, we flew to Panama. We arrived very late in the evening, tired and jetlagged, but our excitement could not be contained. The airport and the roads were filled with banners and posters saying, Bienvenidos peregrinos! Welcome pilgrims! Over and over, we would say to each other, I’m so excited! I was trying to imagine what the actual World Youth Day activities would be like, based on the stories I had heard, but wow, how much my experiences surpassed my expectations.
The next few days went by so fast, filled with a lot of praying, walking, and rejoicing. On our first day, we went to the Pilgrim Center to claim our pilgrim kits. This was a backpack that contained a cap, a jug, guide booklets, a shirt, an ID, a rosary bracelet, a rubber wristband, and a special pilgrim’s Metro card. Using this Metro card, we then commuted to the place where a youth festival was to be held. As one of our first World Youth Day activities, this youth festival will be one of my most favorite memories. It was like a party where we sang worship songs and jumped and danced with other young people from so many countries. We listened to inspiring and almost unbelievable testimonies from members of the lay and clergy, and we worshipped the Most Blessed Sacrament in a Eucharistic Adoration. We returned to our hotel very late that night, but this was truly a festival; we really celebrated our faith. The next day we went to the parish for catechesis. Bishop Baron from the US taught us more about the theme of the WYD: Hagase en mi Segun tu palabra (Be it done unto me according to your word). We even got to sing Our Lady of the Rose for the opening of the mass! Then that afternoon, we met the Pope in a welcoming ceremony. There was an overwhelming number of people, but Pope Francis’ message touched each of our hearts, young and old alike. He spoke in Spanish and so we tuned in to a radio station for the English translation and absorbed his teachings with a peaceful heart.
The following day was a Friday and it was another special day as we had a get-together with the Prelate of Opus Dei, Don Fernando Ocariz, and other girls who go to centers all around the world. We met girls from Guatemala, Chile, and Colombia, just to name a few. We then heard mass and proceeded to the venue for the next activity, the Way of the Cross with the Pope. It was truly a blessing to be with the Holy Father, and he reminded us of this great devotion, telling us that he keeps a small guide for it in his pocket. The next day was the biggest day; it was the day all pilgrims would commute and walk to the St John Paul II park, the large field where the night vigil and closing mass were to be held. Taking the long train rides and walking under the scorching heat was still so enjoyable, for we were all one – pilgrims from every walk of life. We waved at everyone we passed. Even the native Panamanians would smile and talk with us. We exchanged souvenirs, communicated despite language barriers, sang and cheered. During the night, we were absorbed in prayer and reflection. I even remember that near our sleeping bags there was an exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. The very last day of World Youth Day went by too fast. We had the final mass, discovered that the next WYD was to be held at Portugal, and bade farewell to beloved Pope Francis. As pilgrims started leaving the fields, we sang the theme song, signed each other’s flags, and waved goodbye to our new friends. We could not stop smiling and dancing, yet we also felt sad that it was over.
After the actual WYD activities, we toured Panama and visited other centers of Opus Dei. We returned to Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico and gave thanks before we finally we flew back to our home sweet home, our Philippines.
There is so much to say about each moment of our 15-day trip. It is not every day that you can just say, Hi! to every single person as you commute, and we will miss trading mementos with people from all the continents. It was not normal for us when we cried in the masses as we sang and worshipped, even though we could not understand a thing. It is not a regular realization for us, just how absolutely and downright beautiful our faith, our God and His love are. All these feelings, experiences, memories, they have without a doubt increased our physical strength and our spiritual life.
However, more than the travelling, the sightseeing, the commuting, also more than the new friends, the good food and great fun, I will forever keep dearest to my heart everything I have learned and heard from Pope Francis, from Don Fernando, and the experience of World Youth Day itself. I have learned that, contrary to what I have been told, I and all the youth of the world, are not the future. Even Jose Rizal says, Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan.
No, we, the youth, are the present, we are the now of God, the now of the Church.
Young as we are, we can, we should, and we will say Yes! in each moment of our life, in each and every day of our life. Just like Mary, our Mother, God has a definite, special and specific plan for each of us. It takes a lot of courage, generosity, and perseverance to sing our Fiat, but the Father is and always will be here with us to help us. We are never alone, and all our sufferings and difficulties are worthwhile. Let us all keep asking God for help, for light, for guidance; He will never stop giving that to us.
I thank God over and over, and will never stop doing so, because this World Youth Day adventure has really pushed me to discover that amazing thing that is God’s plan. This WYD experience has ended, but the journey to discerning the Father’s special plan for us, our journey to the path of holiness that God has designed for us, our journey to the fulfilment of His dream for us, has only just begun.