Just before we left for San Francisco in 2007, we sent our statue of Our Lady of Fatima out on a "pilgrimage" to the homes of our local friends here on Long Island. It did my heart good to know that the statue wasn't collecting dust in our empty living room, but was instead the center of a thousand rosaries said by so many of the families here.
After leaving our house this past November to make way for our big renovation, we decided to send our statue on tour again, looking forward to the day we will return it to our own (improved) house in time for the May Crowning. As usual, there are no coincidences, and the day before I asked the local moms if they would like to host the statue in their homes, my friend Patrice came across several "devotional prayer books to accompany pilgrim image statues" while decluttering her house. She kindly offered to lend them to me as part of this pretty "Pilgrim Image Bag."
My daughter Marie found a lovely, barely used floral tote in my mother's house and decorated it with a cardboard angel:
Inside, we enclosed a bottle of holy water, miraculous medal, devotional booklets and a newly-purchased journal that just happened to match the pink and green bag perfectly (again, no coincidences):
The plan is for all the families who host the pilgrim image to add stories, prayer requests, children's drawings, and holy pictures to the journal. (Imagine what a keepsake it will be in a few short months!) To give the mothers an idea of what how the journal might look, I filled in the first few pages (with a bit of artistic help from the children). Here are a few sample pages:
Back in 2007, I had hoped Our Lady's "pilgrimage" would become an annual tradition, perhaps beginning every year on the Feast of the Visitation in May or the Feast of the Birth of Mary in September or the feast of Mary, Mother of God in January, but, needless to say, the idea slipped my mind until a month or so ago. Alas, I need life-altering events to get anything done!
[This post dedicated with love and appreciation to everyone who commented on or offered a prayer after reading the "hello" post this week.]
How lovely! And how inspired to think up a way of making holy something as draining as house renovations...
Posted by: Elizabeth@Frabjous Days | January 31, 2010 at 04:27 AM
So lovely, Alice! What a wonderful idea to have a yearly pilgrimage. You are so creative.
Posted by: Carole in Wales | January 31, 2010 at 05:59 AM
What an inspiration this is that you have given us! This would be great to do among our Faith based neighbors also......thank you so much!
Posted by: JP | January 31, 2010 at 06:43 AM
That is a very sweet idea. And you are very blessed to have so many like-minded families in your life!
Posted by: Jennie C. | January 31, 2010 at 09:04 AM
What a lovely idea and what a blessing you and your family are for those in your homeschool group!
Posted by: Christine | January 31, 2010 at 11:13 AM
This is such a great idea! I love it. Thank-you for sharing your family with everyone who visits your blog. Since my mother sent me your blog address I've had it at the top of my queue for blogs to read. I love your wonderful loving photos, great ideas, and homeschooling events. Now that I'm married I can't wait to have children and share with them all the lovely ideas you have posted here. Thank-you from the bottom of my heart and please keep blogging. I look forward to more inspiration in my home and spiritual life.
Posted by: Jana | January 31, 2010 at 12:09 PM
A beautiful idea -- and I have to tell you that the little angel card adorning the tote bag? Has been a favorite card in my family since my now-twenty-year-old was tiny as he looked *exactly* like the angel! In fact, I have one tucked away in his 4-yr-old journal ...
Posted by: Ellie | January 31, 2010 at 05:22 PM
What an incredibly beautiful idea! I love it. Only you, Alice. What a fertile and holy imagination you have, as well as such an eye for beauty.
Posted by: Karen Edmisten | February 07, 2010 at 05:41 PM