“There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens.”

(Eccl 3:1).

Every season I’m in, I claim at that moment my favorite. Autumn, however, infuses my days with new energy. While summer can signal a slower pace, as a time with fewer activities on the calendar, a time for some vacation days, fall for me signals action. No matter my age, this season triggers my inner child anticipating a new school year, new beginnings, more so for me than the New Year.

True, our South Texas heat deprives us of the changing colors of the leaves and cooler temperatures, but we do get hints of fall. With this new season, I welcome the opportunities to start fresh, to look at the calendar and plan out the months ahead, to look for ways to better serve the Lord.

I return with new energy after taking some time to restore myself while on pilgrimage.

My husband and I made a pilgrimage in August to Lourdes, France. Our impromptu journey blessed us with some uninterrupted time together to rest from our day-to-day obligations and restore ourselves as we explored different sites and opened ourselves to new experiences and encounters.

We had not traveled oversees since the pandemic. On our last trip, in 2019, we participated in the procession for the Feast of the Assumption in Paris beginning at Notre Dame Cathedral and ending with Mass at Saint-Sulpice Parish. The thought of participating once again was a driving factor for our visit. Unfortunately, we did not get the grace to attend this year.

The fruits of our pilgrimage come from attending Mass at different holy sites. In addition to our time in Lourdes and celebrating Mass at the grotto, we also participated in Mass at the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal in Paris, where the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared in 1830 to a novice, St. Catherine Laboure, and at the Basilica of Sacré Coeur (Sacred Heart), where for more than 125 years perpetual Eucharistic adoration continues.

However, Lourdes stands as the main highlight. We felt blessed in this holy site that we could immerse ourselves in prayer. We also felt the responsibility of maintaining a prayerful disposition as we carried prayer intentions entrusted to us from loved ones back home.

People come from all over the world to Lourdes, the site where the Blessed Mother appeared to St. Bernadette on 18 separate occasions in 1858 and introduced herself as the Immaculate Conception. They come to immerse themselves in the healing waters from the springs that flow from the Grotto, where the Virgin Mary instructed Bernadette to “go and drink at the spring and wash yourself there.”

To date, of the 7,000-plus cases of unexplained cures, 70 cases are recognized as miraculous healings.  How to begin to count the small miracles imparted, those not always visible? I believe we need to celebrate the everyday miracles of finding forgiveness, of renewing our faith, of inspiring us to work for a stronger relationship with Jesus Christ, with his mother, and with those in our lives.

I was moved by the hundreds of volunteers who pay their way to Lourdes to offer freely of their time to help the thousands of pilgrims who come daily to the sanctuary. I was awe struck by the visible testament of all the pilgrims who participate in the evening processions. The image of pilgrims praying the rosary together in different languages, the thousands of candles held up in the dark, gives witness to the hope in the world, to the trust that God is leading us on this pilgrimage.

In these days, where discord among people and nations seems to be growing, these lights in the darkness demonstrate that we, through God’s guidance, are the hope for the world, by our actions, our works of mercy toward one another, shine God’s light.

Action. This word brings me back to autumn, these days of new beginnings, and to the energy we need to report for duty for doing our part to build up the Kingdom. To maintain a steady pace, we need Jesus Christ front and center, starting with him present in the Eucharist.

The U.S. bishops are leading a Eucharistic Revival to reawaken us to this great mystery of our faith. In everything we do, let’s make sure to spend time with the Lord and to prepare ourselves for each encounter with him at Mass. We don’t have to go on pilgrimage to distant places to find him. Start with your parish church.