So it is finished- my 20s :)
The start to this year's Triduum has gone pretty according to plan (heh. I mean, the events of the Triduum were kind of an ordained plan. That's how Triduum works)- but here I mean MY plans (at the risk of sounding kind of obnoxious). I finished out the week with my last grad class of the semester and also said goodbye to the kiddies I teach as we head into SPREAK BREAK! FINALLY!! (Some of my students brought me cupcakes on Thurs, too, which was very sweet :)
My parents rolled into town on Holy Thursday and came over to join me for Mass and my 30th birthday celebration in the "upper room" of a bar here in DC :)
I was really humbled by my friends and family who came to celebrate. I had friends there from my 30 years of life: friends from first grade, high school, college, my years as a youth minister, and my current besties.
Also, as anticipated...I celebrated QUITE well and needed to rest on my actual birthday- Good Friday. But I like to chill on Good Friday. Keep it solemn and simple. I'm a traditional kind of girl in that respect.
Yesterday, my parents joined me for lunch (and by joined me for lunch I mean brought me a sandwich and gatorade as I sat in my pajamas :) and then we went to a Good Friday service. The service we went to was one here in Silver Spring. Not my parish, but one I had been to when I celebrated Triduum by myself here in DC a couple years earlier. The service is really well attended, starts at 3pm (I like my Good Friday services to start at 3pm. It's a thing I have) and is solemn yet prayerful.
This year, the thing that struck me the most about the service was the people. The veneration of the cross is my favorite, and watching people come up to honor it was striking to me. Young and old, all bowing down to give honor to the God that we love. Christ truly unites us.
So this Triduum has had a communal focus for me so far, as well as liturgy done well. The Holy Thursday Mass we went to in DC was long, but really traditional- lots of sacred music, the washing of the feet of the parishioners, and my FAVORITE part- the Pange Lingua and transfer of the Eucharist. I just always imagine us going to the garden with Jesus to pray at that moment.
My fav Holy Thursday (well, I have two...who does that? I'm such a nerd) was once in high school (or maybe I was home from college) and at my family parish in OH where a friend from high school youth group and I got to have our feet washed. My parish back home makes it a point to have young and old- really different representations of people in the parish- to get their feet washed. And that was signficant for me at that time in my life.
My other fav H.T. was when my bestie from Ohio and I were in Spain. The Mass was sadly not that well attended, but it was in this big old Church and the transfer of the Eucharist was particularly powerful for me. My friend and I stayed there praying for a while and it was just cool to be in another country doing the same things we would do at home, to have my friend there, and just really experience the universality of the Church.
This year's Holy Thursday will now have a rank with those top 2 ;)
Today is Holy Saturday and my parents and I are probably still taking it easy today. I haven't decided if I will go to the Easter Vigil tonight. We all know it's my FAVORITE but I don't like to make other people sit through it whom haven't written disertations about it like I have :)
Easter Sunday we are celebrating at the same Church we went to for Holy Thursday Mass and then going to brunch at a high school friend's home here in DC. It will be nice to have a piece of home to celebrate the feast with me here in DC.
I'm liking this communal aspect that is starting off my 30s- being surrounded by people I love is definitely a way to celebrate new life ;)
On a slightly sadder note, the tales of woe with our house continue. Remember the winter of no heat? Well, I came home on Wed from work to water in our basement. Our landlord sent over someone right away to fix the water tank which was leaking, but the damage had been done for my poor roommate whose room is IN the basement. The carpet in her room got soaked and is still wet and smelly :( So she is moving out!
We were planning on going our separate ways this summer anyways, but now it looks like we will be splitting up sooner. So 30 will be bringing me a new adventure in finding a new place to live! Anyone relocating to the DC/Northern VA area??? :)
I will also say goodbye to my parents after Easter brunch on Sunday and add the last items to my suitcase before I leave for FL on Monday!!! Yeah!!
30 certainly rocks! Get ready for obnoxious beach text and tweets in the week to come!
And thanks again to all who made my entrance into my 30s special.
Blessed Triduum and Easter!!
Peace,
Julia
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