“Happy Mother’s Day to…young mothers, old mothers, grandmothers, step mothers, biological & nonbiological mothers, those with babies in heaven, those who have stepped into the role and those with a mothering heart.” – Pinterest
These posts are always challenging for me to write, so please know I am writing to you with the best intentions. Religion and spirituality are hot buttons…and have been for centuries. Most wars have been started because of it. I am not for or against any one particular denomination.
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It wasn’t preplanned but I spent my morning on Mother’s Day at Fatima…honoring the most well-known Mother of them all, The Virgin Mary.
I’ll let you read about Fatima and the children on your own but it is a holy place known for a miracle recognized by the Catholic Church. Yesterday was the huge celebration and I opted not to go because of the crowds. I definitely made the right decision.
I’m not religious anymore. I was raised Catholic but have chosen to follow my own spiritual path. But I still love the traditions of the Catholic faith. There is something beautiful about the prayers, incense, the rosary, ringing of the bells at the consecration of the Eucharist, etc…but I just can’t come to terms with the human error of the child molestation situation(s) and the cover-up by those who knew/know better. That rant is better not shared at this time though. Instead, I’d prefer to focus on the beautiful events that unfolded during my day at such a holy landmark.
I rode the 7:30 am bus from Tomar to Fatima. We arrived about 8:30 am and the place was already very busy.
At the bus station, there was a gift shop that had a sign offering a free map. I stopped in and I got the last one in English. The woman behind the counter was very kind and explained everything on the map in detail along with a sales pitch about buying a rosary because there would be a blessing at 10 am. I bought a little wooden bead and metal pendant wrist rosary. I can’t and don’t want to carry much more in my bag so this was perfect.
Before I left, she held my arm, blessed me, and then threw in a free medal depicting the apparition.
Something about the way she held my arm and looked at me made me overcome with emotion and I quickly put on my sunglasses and exited the store. It was then that I realized it was Mother’s Day.
My own mother and I have been estranged for three years now. It’s sad but necessary. Most days I’m okay with the new arrangement but some days catch me off guard. Like today.
I had two hours before the blessing so I stopped to have breakfast and read.
When I walked over to the main area, I noticed people “walking” on their knees toward the church. We all have a devotion and sacrifice but, ouch. The Camino seems like a breeze compared to that.
I noticed everyone was gathering for the blessing quite early, which made the other areas of the complex, less busy. Including the line to buy some candles and toss them into the big fire pit. It’s a pretty cool concept but that fire is H.O.T.
Check out this video I took of people offering their candles into the flames. https://youtube.com/shorts/-4vQNgPjWRM?feature=share
I lit three candles for some friends, family (including my mother), and myself and tossed them onto the melting globs of wax, asking for peace and forgiveness.
After the melting of the candles, I walked over to the area where they were saying the rosary and offering a blessing. Apparently, this is the actual site of the apparition…where Mary revealed herself to the three children and later to 700 townspeople.
It was a moving experience, I’m not going to lie. Almost the entire place has a very calming and peaceful vibe to it. I say almost because the gift shops are a madhouse. It’s like Disneyland for religious trinkets. A few people (not many) were pretty pushy and tried cutting the lines. I wanted to say, “Sharon, don’t worry, they have more in the warehouse, you’ll get yours. Have a little faith.”
Oh, and those creepy-looking wax limbs on the bottom shelf are for the fire. I think people were picking out different body parts as an offering for specific healing requests but don’t quote me on that.
I will say, I have a love, not hate, but confusion with these types of places. A miracle happened here and that is sacred. It’s a place of worship but the church is also raking in a lot of money off of it. I know operating costs, staffing, the light bill, etc. but I’m still conflicted over it.
Before I left, I got a stamp of Fatima for my Pilgrim Passport. ❤️🙏
After a few hours walking around the complex and eating a lovely salad, I headed back to Tomar in an Uber…but using the local company Bolt. Otherwise, I would have had to wait until 6:30 pm to return on the only bus for the day. Unfortunately, my driver got lost in town for 20 minutes trying to find my location and then she took two more wrong turns while I was in the car. It was an ordeal, to say the least, but we made it. Bless her little heart.
Tomar is a lovely little town and I highly recommend making a visit if you are in Portugal. Plus, the steak and truffle fries are delicious.
Goodnight, much love and Happy Mother’s Day from Portugal! 🇵🇹
Scenes from Day 10
