Just Like Kiabakari

What a rewarding day today, bright and sunny here in Los Angeles, with temps exceeding 35 Celsius. Feeling so much better in these conditions and range of temps, far closer or similar to those in Kiabakari and Tanzania at large. My general mood is that I feel like a solar panel that absorbs hungrily sun rays after gloomy and dark past days in my heart and mind... Recharging my heart and mind and body with these positive rays of warmth and light. Thanks be to God for today, for my new temporary passport and kindness and swift help of Polish Consulate staff in LA, for my Amtrak ticket for my upcoming trip cross country from LA to Chicago (two days on board of Southwestern Chief train number 4), for Fr. Rafal - my true Guardian Angel here in the only Polish parish in Los Angeles, for his kindness and hospitality and helping hand...God is great and so are His chosen ones I am truly blessed to meet day by day on my North American trail...

Who Am I?

Finally, the seriousness of the situation I was put in since Sunday, got to me and I don't like what I see, what I understand and what I feel... Who am I now? I have no name, I have no nationality, I have no country to live in, I have become nobody to the computerized eyes of this world. I have no ID of any sort on me, everything was stolen. My privacy has been violated, I feel 'raped', I feel vulnerable, I feel helpless, I feel I do not exist anymore...

All Souls Day

Waking up to the warm rays of the rising sun in Los Angeles, hoping for a better day, brighter mind and peace in my heart. It has been long journey by Greyhound bus from Stockton to LA, arriving not as announced at 9.30 pm, but 11.30 pm... Welcoming Fr. Rafal, poor lad had to wait for me that long... And now the All Souls Day in the polish parish in Los Angeles, three Masses and a meeting with Polish diaspora in the evening... I love praying for the departed, I love offering Holy Mass for the repose of their souls, I love to recite Divine Mercy chaplet and other prayers for my sisters and brothers in Purgatory. This is so important! One day I become like them. How amazing is that to save souls from Purgatory! How important! How necessary this sacred solidarity, this union of souls helping each other...
 

This Is When The Real Fun Starts..

Ok, so this is the morning after... Need to get down to the police station to get their statement with the case number and do some passport photos while I'm still here in Stockton, CA, so I can proceed to Los Angeles to get the ball rolling...You gotta love this stuff...

The Communion Of Saints

It's already All Saints Day in Africa and Europe as I put these words in this post. Since that unfortunate happening I explained in my previous post, I have been experiencing the true display of the communion of Saints with so many people feeling with me, compassionate and connecting with me. This is true revelation of this article of the creed. The communion of Saints. Thank you all, who are genuine Saints in this world. You never leave alone a vulnerable person, hit hard by life's unexpected events...

Setback

One little thing can change the whole scheme of things or simply turn them upside down. This is what exactly happened just a few hours ago. As I wrote in my preceding post, I went to Presentation Catholic Church here in Stockton, CA, to celebrate Mass for all those intentions of my and others hearts I mentioned there. So this is what I did...

Fitting Finale

On the very last day of this month of October, I have been invited to celebrate a Holy Mass at the Presentation of Our Lady church in Stockton, where my friend and buddy I have come to visit belongs to and serves at as a church usher on Sundays... How fitting this is to say the last Holy Mass in this month of Rosary at the church of the Presentation of Our Lady...

Western Coast

Just  a quick post to let you know that I arrived safely to San Francisco and will stay in the area for a few days, almost a week, visiting friends I have known, liked and respected for quite a some time, years even, but never had chance to meet them in real life, same as it was the case with friends in Canada. Still with a heavy heart missing 'my' people in Canada and the country at large. I will never seize to thank for their kindness, hospitality and caring hearts. My heart stays with them, my prayers are and will be with them and the Holy Mass offered for them and the intentions dear to their hearts will be a part of my spirituality based on gratitude.

Kwaheri Ya Kuonana

KWAHERI YA KUONANA in Swahili language means GOOD BYE TILL WE MEET AGAIN. Just a very quick note, but fully loaded with emotions, sadness and feeling of inevitable looming over me. This is my last evening in Canada before I fly tomorrow early morning to Toronto and then to San Francisco to start a second chapter of my North American odyssey...

Kahnawake

A friend of mine took me this morning for a short trip to Kahnawake Mohawk Reserve on the other side of St. Lawrence River. I returned saddened with what I saw there. Since my childhood I have been a great fan of adventure books - in particular of Karl May - telling a proud tale of Natives in North America, then movies came along, especially 'Dances With Wolves'... but the reality of Natives I have witnessed today dealt a devastating blow to this lifelong beliefs and mental picture filled with my awe and respect...

13 Out Of 33

This is the number of Chilean miners belonging to Jesus of Nazareth parish in Copiapo, Chile. The parish priest of that parish is 47 year old Polish Claretian priest, Fr. Adam Bartyzol, born in Pieniazkowice in Podhale region of Southern Poland, who has been working in Chile for four years now...

Happy Anniversary

October 25 - a very special day in the history of my family. The day my Mum and Dad got married in 1958 in Krakow-Nowa Huta. Today 52 years passed since that day. Two years ago we celebrated the Golden Jubilee of my parents' wedding. I remember vividly that day, when I celebrated the Holy Mass in our apartment in Krakow, as my Mum did not feel well and Grandma could not walk by her own power to the parochial church...

Polish Radio 7 Toronto

Last Thursday, on October 21, 2010, I had an opportunity to spread more news on Kiabakari, Divine Mercy and my life as a missionary in Tanzania, when I was invited to talk about these issues on air in Polish Radio 7 in Toronto. Here is a link to the audio file of this radio talk. Hope you enjoy it in Polish language...

In Retrospect

The past three weeks in Canada - two in Quebec and one in Ontario - have been one of the best times in my life. Serious. My vague idea of what Canada is about has been immensely 'modified' and let's be honest - shattered into pieces, particularly in the area of people and relationships. Before I arrived to Montreal, I did not know a single person in real life. All my contacts were made in virtual reality, online, through social networks like Nasza Klasa and Facebook! It is amazing how well all this worked out in real life terms...

Berlin

The place I'm at, was called first the Town of Berlin, then the City of Berlin since 1854 through 1916. Then the Germans lost the First World War and the city become known as Kitchener. Nowadays along with the city of Waterloo and Cambridge, the three cities are called 'the tri-cities'. Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge is all about contrasts and symbiosis of the past and the modern...

Toronto.pl

Since I arrived to Toronto on Saturday, my state of mind is nothing short of amazement and awe, mixed with pride and respect for the people I have met in this city. So sad, that Polish community or better, Polish diaspora, in the United States of America stole a mainstream of news on Poles in North America. Polish community in Canada - in my humble opinion - has been living far too long in the shadow of its mighty big brother from the States and somehow deprived of its due glory and credit for its amazing history...

Service To Resume Soon

Since I arrived to Toronto, I've been quite busy and offline (no computer at my disposal at the moment). There have been lots of thing to write about and share, but I ask kindly for your patience. The normal service will resume on this blog soon, hopefully on Tuesday as I reach Kitchener. God bless you all! Lots of love and respect! Peace!

________________________
Wojciech Adam Koscielniak

Mail address: P.O. Box 1010 Musoma, Tanzania, East Africa

Website: www.wojciechkoscielniak.pl
Blog: http://kiabakarisnippets.blogspot.com

Foundation 'Kiabakari'
www.kiabakari.org

He Will Take Care Of It

He had only a few words for the Assembly: ‘’This is not my work, it is the work of Saint Joseph. Put one of his statues in the middle of the building. If he wants a roof over his head, he’ll take care of it.’’ Two months later, the Congregation had amassed the necessary funds to continue working on the construction.

Coltan

Did you ever hear this word before? I did not. Till today when I came across a link to a short video called 'Blood Coltan' on Facebook. I followed the link and watched the video. This is not a very pleasant experience, I admit. Then dug in for more info on internet, YouTube in particular and found 'Blood Coltan' divided into six parts for easier downloading. Below you can watch all six of them or you can follow the link I posted above and see there.

Sleepless In Montreal

Impossible to sleep while mesmerized by the voice of the one of the best countertenors of all times - Andreas Scholl... How can I sleep when this voice sends me into orbit of my dreams, passions, worries, despairs, joys, prospects, lights and shadows??? Impossible!