BARCELONA – EL PILAR (320 KM) – 20 TO 31 JULY 2021
I remember the pilgrimage to El Pilar with great fondness, because it was the first one I went on with the parish of Sant Mateu and Sant Rafael.
Although preparations for this expedition began practically 9 months before we set off walking (fundraising with Twelfth Night cakes, Easter cakes, Sant Jordi roses and coques de Sant Joan, as well as planning the route and finding places to sleep), all those efforts culminated in being able to start walking on 20 July 2021. I think that day we all had the same idea in our heads: “there’s no turning back now: next stop, El Pilar”.
I’m sure all of us pilgrims were loaded with intentions, with friends and acquaintances to pray for, with sick people to commend to God and with worries to resolve. So, with that rucksack full of hopes and concerns, we set off.
It was spectacular to see the unity there was, and is, in this parish, how despite the tiredness everyone worked and helped however they could. What I enjoyed most was being able to walk alongside so many young people who were so cheerful and happy, who weren’t afraid to do whatever it took to pass on that joy.
It’s a unique experience, which I would recommend to anyone willing to make sacrifices, because it never leaves anyone indifferent. And it isn’t only reaching the destination that makes an impact, but the whole journey: from the preparation beforehand and walking alongside so many people to, above all, the days afterwards, when you get home and discover how little it takes to lay the table, obey the first time or pray every day. It’s an experience that leaves its mark, one you enjoy even when it’s hard, from which you always come out better and, contradictory as it may seem, recharged with energy and enthusiasm.
