I am totally hymned out.
Let me explain, this week for me has been stupidly busy. Not only do we have a mass of training for work but we also have to complete work in between and everything that could go slightly wrong for me at work, went wrong. So I had to fix it. It was also a full moon, which always turns me into a grumpy old bag anyway.
All of this took place to the sound of hymns. The Pilgrims are in town.
Although I attended a Catholic school I’d never heard of World Youth Day, apparently it happens every couple of years. There are half million extra people in town.
And they are singing.
And they are happy.
And they seem to like carrying flags a lot.
And they all must have got a free backpack because they are all wearing little yellow and red backpacks.
Directly opposite my office they have created a sort of… stadium where for the past week they have been singing hymns and having a good old Catholic knees up.
In some ways I’ve found it a bit inspiring, I’ve seen hundreds of nuns walking down the street. Looking at their beatific faces made me feel a little calmer and a little bit better about the world. And I did get a little excited when I saw the Pope’s boat from the window in my office (POPE ON A BOAT!)
Other bits I’ve found a bit… odd. Most of these people are camping… they’ve flown all the way to Australia and are camping out on a school oval.. Apparently a lot of them didn’t realise that Australia actually is quite cold at night in Winter and there has been requests for donations of blankets and jumpers. And why come all this way to see the Pope when surely it would be cheaper to just hang out near the Vatican and see him there? And… some of the music they have been playing when they weren’t playing hymns did not strike me as particularly “Christian” music.. Queen… er… Freddie Mercury was gay… is the Church not against that? Silverchair’s “Straight Lines” over and over and over again.
“Something I will never forget
I felt desperate
And stuck to the marrow
Invisible to everyone else
I’m a sex change
And a damsel with no heroine
Ooh, Ooh, Ooh”
Rightio.
Today I drove to meet my friend Flo for brunch, I left the house at 10am and an hour later I was 2 kilometres from home. I am ashamed to say I “GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRDDDDDDDD” in a policeman’s face when he told me I could not turn around to and go back the way I came as there were roadblocks everywhere. It took me a good hour and a half to drive about 8 kms.
What I couldn’t work out was why they were walking? We have a ok public transport system… surely they can afford a bus ticket… why are there bunches of them just randomly walking around with flags and guitars and tambourines…? GET ON A BUS! Oh… YOU WANT TO WALK, IT’S PART OF THE THINGIE.
Each to their own, but you certainly would not get me to walk across the city with lots of overly happy, noisy people to go and camp out in a racecourse for a mass.
Fair play to you, may the weather be kind. I can’t say I’ll miss the non-stop hymns.
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