Quo Vadis Days (No pictures, sorry)

Hey folks!

I went on a vocational discernment retreat directly after Steubenville (last post) called Quo Vadis Days. It is for men ages 13-19 in Cle Elum, WA. It lasted for three days as eighty teenagers prayed and played. There were four priests and several seminarians there for confessions, Mass, and talks. Bishop Joseph Tyson arrived on the last day for Mass and a talk.

We played Capture the Flag, ‘man style.’ We were running through the woods so fast that to tag someone you almost had to tackle them. Literally. I ‘tagged’ several people. I also faceplanted when someone with better jukes broke my ankles like Stephen Curry. Figuratively. We lost both games but I’m pretty sure the other team’s prisoners cheated by linking arms and declaring themselves ‘free.’ The best part of the retreat was by far the rally, though.

It was an obstacle course loaded with challenges designed to push every ounce of strength out of your body. We were ready. We decorated each other’s faces with blue paint. The first obstacle in our path for Olympic gold was the ‘Mousetrap challenge.’ You have to crawl across a mousetrap gauntlet on your hands and knees. The more traps you set off with your body, the more points for your team. Our first ‘mousetrapper’ was Guillermo, a four-year QVD veteran, who should have known the technique. Instead, he got his pinky pinched and exited with several battle wounds. From learning how not to do it, I found a good method of doing it. I was the only one on my team wearing jeans, so I didn’t have to worry about my knees or shins getting pinched. I was still barefoot, though, so that factor weighed in. Considering all this, I balled my hands up into fists and elevated my feet above the ground. I then crawled across the gauntlet, setting off nearly every mousetrap, and never getting pinched. It was awesome.

The rally also included the Cookie face, rope climb, cup-on-the-head, and balloon toss challenges. Next came the Mud Crawl, another highlight. Only 4 of our 7 guys attempted it. There was mud you had to crawl through on your belly; suspended off the ground were little bells that would ring if you came up at all. If you ring three times, your crawl doesn’t count. We scored 48 crawls between the four of us. The record for the day was 49. As a team in this rally, we got second place behind the 17-19 year olds.

The rest of the retreat was pretty awesome too. We played 3-on-3 basketball tournaments, and I was able to have deep theological conversations with Michael Kelly, a seminarian, and Fr. Peter Steele, a recently ordained priest. They gave me insight on how to follow in their footsteps and good reading material to help on the journey.

Still, the best priestly advice I have received:

“Be careful with the distractions of the world in the upcoming years. Just stay focused on God and you’ll be fine.”