We truly are the Easter people.
The Abbey
An announcement was made at our parish that during the week of Holy Week there would be no confessions. It had been a month since my last confession, so I felt that before Easter I needed to be purged of my transgressions. My friend Susan and I made plans to go to St. Michael’s Abbey because they were still hearing confessions.
When we arrived the line was wrapped around the building with more than 50 people waiting. We arrived at 1:15 p.m.
I had an appointment with my optometrist at 3:30 p.m. that I had to cancel because I knew this was going to take longer. With four priests hearing confessions, we were done by 3;00 p.m.
Small Talk
Small talk has always been my gift, so I started a conversation with a lady behind us. She had driven from Dana Point, which was a 45-minute drive. As our conversation continued she mentioned that on Good Friday Santiago Retreat Center opens to hikers to go through the Stations of the Cross. “Is it a hard climb?” “Could someone like me do it?” I asked. She was an outdoorsy-type of person who hikes on a regular basis. She answered, “I’m sure you could do it!” This was a challenge, but I did not want to do this alone.
The No Planning Debacle
If you know anything about me, even if I plan things, something always goes wrong. I called Russ ( my son-in-law) and asked if he would like to join me on this hike. I could hear Sonja in the background, “Why are you planning things with my husband?” Russ added that Sonja was off on Good Friday. So between the two of them, the message was clear that they were not interested. But on Thursday, while Mike and I were at dinner, I received a text from Russ saying that they wanted to go on the hike.
On Good Friday I woke up in a panic. “I needed to be at Sonja’s at 7:45 a.m.. “Are you coming with us?” I asked Mike. “Going where? What are you talking about?” The hike, I answered. Of course I forgot to mention all the specifics to Mike but, thank God, he decided to join us.
I had an unscheduled appointment to see Mario, so I wanted to make sure that we finished on time for me to drive to Norco.
Being unaware that we needed to register online was just one small hurdle. I forgot to bring water, so Sonja supplied us. “Do you have the directions?” I asked as we were driving. Sonja looked puzzled, “I thought you took care of this.” No, just pull it up on your phone,” I answered. “What is the name of the place?” she asked. “Silverado Retreat Center,”I replied. “Mom, there is no such place! I found Santiago Retreat Center.” “Oh, I forgot, that’s it!”
The Stations of the Cross
This experience was both beautiful and challenging. As I looked in the distance I could see the iron cross. I thought to myself, “We’re not going that high, are we?” We were, and it took an hour to hike up to the summit. Some of the terrain was rocky and steep; with each station the walk became more arduous.
When we reached the Forth Station of the Cross, it became more of a spiritual challenge. I knew the Lord was with us at every station. I felt safe. When reaching the summit, I looked at the path below us and thanked God for allowing us to experience this holy adventure. It was around 11:15 a.m. by the time we finished our hike, two hours total. I was in a bit of a rush because I needed to drive to Norco.
The Visit
A quick breakfast of fried eggs and avocado toast, and then I was off to visit Mario. When I arrived at the facility there were two new guards at the check-in station. I arrived a little before 1:00 p.m. I remembered the time that I did not have an appointment I was made to wait until 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon. For as many times as I tried to make an appointment, the prison system was blocking me. In frustration, I gave up. To this day their system is still unable to get this problem resolved.
Two Rude Officers
“Do you have an appointment?” asked the first woman officer. “No, your system is down and I was unable to get one scheduled,” I answered. “Well, we’ve changed the time for walk -in appointment visits to 4:00 p.m. Didn’t you read the website?” she smugly answered. “When was it changed?” I asked. “Two weeks ago, you should have read the website.” We went back and forth, with me trying to explain that not only did I not know about this, but that Mario was unaware of this change as well.
I pleaded with both of these rude women, but they would not give in. I explained that I was the only one there, that it was Good Friday, and all I wanted was to minister to my nephew. One with a tight bun looked at me and told me to stop arguing with them. I was not in anyway arguing but only trying to explain that I could not get an appointment because of their faulty system.
I asked to speak to their supervisor but to no avail. “We’re not going to do that because the answer is going to be NO!” “How do you know if the answer is going to be no if you don’t ask?” I responded.
When I reminded them that it was Good Friday, one of them said, “It’s just a another Friday.” I could not wait three and a half hours, so I left. I cried part of the way home, thinking I let Mario down. By the time Mario called I was more composed; we were both saddened by this rude outcome.
One thing I will never understand about visiting someone in prison is that the visitor is treated like a prisoner.
My Prayer
Dear Lord, thank You for allowing us to walk the Stations of Your glorious Cross. I pray for every pilgrim who took this hike to come to the knowledged of how very difficult each station was for You, Lord. Please touch the hearts of these prison employees. Teach them empathy and to treat all visitors with respect. Amen.
