Back Home

Landed in Kraków airport close to midnight last night, then a taxi to St. Kazimierz parish where I stay. It took a while to get some sleep, things to do first, laundry and so forth, but managed to wake up on time and go to Sisters' convent a few hundred meters away from the parish for the 6.45am Holy Mass.

Now waiting for the funeral Mass of Sr. Aniela, one of my favorite sisters, who suffered immensely in her long illness, whom I have always knows as jovial, full of life and energy person. May Lord grant her eternal peace.

I still feel a bit dizzy having covered yesterday a distance from Fatima by bus to Lisbon, visiting St. Anthony church built on his birthplace in Lisbon there, long wait at the airport and four hours flight to Warsaw, another wait for the connection to Krakow, and from the Balice airport to my ghetto.

My personal pilgrimage to Fatima was a must for me this time when I am in Europe. Long due after the last one I did my my fellow missionary, Fr. Piotr, back in 2001. I had a truckload of reasons to go there - to praise the Lord with Our Lady, to thank Merciful God, Our Lady, St. Joseph, Fatima seers, to ask for forgiveness for our sins and failures, to commit myself and ourselves in Kiabakari, family, foundation and friends anew to Our Lady and her maternal protection and intercession. So many intentions to present to Our Lady - my personal and others.

I feel in peace now and happy, hopeful and focused, totally surrendered to God and His Will under protection of Our Lady of Fatima.

May Lord's Will be done. Amen.

Zipping Up My Travel Bag

In a few hours time I will be on my way back to Kiabakari via Mwanza. As I zip up my travel bag, I wrap up also the evaluation of this short trip to Dar es Salaam. It has been one of the most intense and exhausting visits to the business capital of Tanzania. Flew in on Wednesday with a short to-do-list hoping that I will be able to tick off at least half of the items on it. I am grateful to Almighty and Merciful God and to kind persons who helped me on the way, that most of the important issues I was able to complete.

The container with school and medical supplies for our health center, pre-school and primary school in Kiabakari is finally on its way to Kiabakari, hoping to reach the destination tomorrow evening or on Tuesday. All due payments settled, paperwork completed. I am grateful to our parishioner and the chairman of the development board of Kiabakari, who was instrumental in making sure that the container clearing and forwarding process went smoothly.

He's been also helping me with the registration of Honda 110 motorcycles which came in last year container. When I am back in Dar, I am sure this process will also be completed and I will come back to Kiabakari with registration cards and number plates for the motorcycles, allowing us to start using the vehicles for the benefit of our mission pastoral work, school and health center facilities.

The registration of our pre-school and primary school has got a new impetus and - although I will have to be back in Dar in a few days again - I am hopeful that in a short time we will see the issue solved positively and successfully.

I used this opportunity of being in Dar to deliver invitation cards for my silver jubilee in Kiabakari to my friends and benefactors, especially those who helped me in fundraiser in March this year. I will be extremely happy to see at least some of them attending the jubilee celebration on November 21 in Kiabakari and the official government and diocesan opening of the development projects, completed by that time - on November 22. I was able to collect the special color brochure (500 copies) with the program of that day, printed beautifully in Dar.

So, feeling happy and accomplished, I zip up my bag and set off to the airport to go back to Kiabakari to wait for the container and finish the paperwork in the district offices to come back again to Dar for a couple of days to push the registration process of our schools ahead and finish other project matters.

Deo gratias for this trip, goodbye Dar and Indian Ocean shores, praying for the safe return to Kiabakari and God's blessing for all of us for this week! Continuing to light the candle of hope for my people in Kiabakari! Take care!

Homing In

As the day wakes up, so are our expectations. This is going to be an interesting day, a homing in day. Our Foundation Kiabakari two new volunteers, Agata and Karolina, have arrived safely to Nairobi yesterday and were met at the airport by Sarafina, our 'envoy', escorted to the hotel and taken care of. Two visiting doctors from Poznań, Wiktor and Adam, arrived yesterday to Nairobi as well, in the evening, and were met by Sarafina and put in the same hotel. Today all five will travel by bus to Sirari border Kenya-Tanzania crossing and further on to Kiabakari. I will fly to Musoma from Dar es Salaam today and, God willing, will reach Kiabakari before the Nairobi detail to get ready to receive the arriving guests. Indeed, a homing in day for all of us. Prayers appreciated as usual for us so we can travel safely and meet happily in Kiabakari. God bless us all!

17 Hours

At exactly the same moment I started to write this post, the alarm siren sounded in Poland marking the 67th anniversary of Warsaw Uprising, its beginning at 5pm on that August 1st afternoon in occupied Warsaw. I have written on this topic last year on the same date (read it here), so no need to repeat what I have written already...

Sad Reality

We have got sad news last night, in the middle of the night, that older brother of Sister Grace, the administrator of our health center, has passed away after long illness... I celebrated a Holy Mass for the repose of the soul of late Godfrey, we consoled Sister Grace and feel for her and her immediate family back at home. Now we've got a serious problem. How to get Sister Grace back home for the funeral, and if not possible, at least to be present during the wake?

Last Weekend

Looking forward to my return to Poland and bit later - to Tanzania...This weekend, last weekend on North American soil, bears a unique meaning to me - it feels like the words of the Book of Genesis, when God after creating all these wonderful things, rested...

A New Day

I was unable to write anything yeterday, though the day was fully charged with emotions, happenings, travel, farewells and so forth... It was a very sad and traumatic day for me... Sometimes everything falls apart on its own merit, relations and friendships end, without any input from myself. It was one of those days... Thank God it's a new day today... This is the first friday of this month...I enclose my wounded heart in the Sacred Heart of Jesus... It is all I can do as the tears have not dry out yet...

Going To The West

Setting out this morning on a - hopefully - lovely and memorable trip to the western part of Poland - Poznań, Zielona Góra, Wrocław and elsewhere...Such a beautiful weather, let it stay this way all the way till the end of the week. Feeling in a mood to sing along with Connie Dover...

Home

Arrived safely, at last, home this afternoon. Tired, delayed, but eventually happy. My happiness grew immensely reconnecting with my Dad, Brother, closest friends and Sisters whom I visited and said Holy Mass for them and for myself, thanking God for safe journey, for he past month and all achievements, asking for forgiveness and committing myself, my loved ones and the stay in Poland and the travel to North America to Divine Mercy through the intercession of Our Lady of Fatima. More thoughts, feelings, reflections to follow tomorrow. Going to bed now! Good night!

Schengen

Sitting at the table with my laptop, fresh after a quick three days holidays in Austria. I just realized that the distance from Ulmerfeld in Austria to Kraków is more or less the same as the distance from Kraków to the Baltic Sea - approx. 580 kilometers. And yet, throughout all these past years, it seemed as if Ulmerfeld was on a different planet! Actually, it took us less time to get from there to Kraków, and the journey was pleasant and seamless, contrary to the arduous trip to northern tip of Poland, taking the condition of our roads into consideration.

Reisefieber

I woke up this morning, generally trashed after bad night and pain in my liver and stomach (getting used to it, and trying to stay positive though), so was quite reluctant to get up from bed and get going. And yet  that overall bad mood was overwhelmed by an excitement of an upcoming trip to Poland. This sensation, so well known to me, whenever I get ready to travel, and so common among the traveling nation worldwide, is called in our European geographical longitude and latitude Reisefieber.