Brothers and Searchers
Not far from the City of Brotherly Love,
a college promoted what Catholics dreamt of.
Within the four walls of Campus Ministry,
A whole bunch of students endured lottery.
A special selection – not left in the lurch,
Was picked for a weekend retreat called THE SEARCH!
When that special Friday at last did get here,
To our disappointment the sky was not clear.
The crowd was assembling in St. Rita Hall,
and soon we were off to have such a great ball!
The rain trickled on as we drove out of sight,
And headed on out to the camp for the night.
We hollered and sang on our way to the grounds,
and made rather merry till the camp we soon found.
We entered and gathered for evening prayer,
but not before looking around at the lair;
and stuffing our faces with pizza and soda,
with all of our new friends now seated all over.
Our small groups assembled, our leaders said hi,
All started to hope this retreat would not fly!
We’d broken the ice, and the friendships began,
more bonding continued till bedbound we ran!
The first night thus ended, the morning was here,
again we were greeted by skies not quite clear!
We sprang from our cots upon hearing the song,
our song for the weekend—a loud one and long!
The dining hall beckoned from elsewhere on camp,
with bacon, eggs, pancakes—food fit for a champ!
What more could one ask for when chow time was done?
Our group leaders showed up to tell us, “Have fun!”
They handed out blindfolds, and we could not wait,
to pair up and start on the great “Walk of Faith”.
Inspired with excitement, we all kept on going,
as winds on the campgrounds continued their blowing.
A moment of glory then came for the bunch—
the team members called us to come and get lunch!
Hot dogs and hamburgers and soup—what a dream!
As soon as we finished, out came the ice cream!
Some faith talks then followed—these leaders were smart!
We listened to them as they poured out their hearts!
The evening settled like a soft, purple cloak,
on the camp’s grassy fields and its maples and oaks.
The cabin we sat in was filled with such cold,
the routine of the weekend was yet to get old.
But what was this aspect for which we were SEARCHING?
This question we pondered was just so disturbing.
And then, oh it happened—and what a surprise!
The team came and greeted us girls and us guys!
Our leaders disbursed many env’lopes to us,
We tore them all open and tried not to bust.
From parents and friends and from people we loved,
and also from strangers – perhaps God above!
With warm affirmations from letters like these,
our treasures were closeby—with all guarantees!
A bonfire then beckoned to us from outdoors,
with some purpose other than cooking up smores!
It roared and it roared as we wrote down our sins,
and tossed them all into the hot, fiery bin!
The grace of forgiveness—too great not to care,
it healed all our souls and brought many to tears!
And what better thing to do after all this,
than go back and listen to music with bliss!
We rocked and we rolled to great tunes of the past,
and, boy – did we have an incredible blast!
When calm, Sunday morning came filtering in,
we woke up and tried not to face the chagrin.
With breakfast and more talks and last-minute bonding–
we all so reluctantly geared for departing.
With last-minute clean-up we left the quaint camp,
again to face weather quite dreary and damp.
Imagine the shock when we got back to school,
and witnessed another thing that was too cool!
The grotto-side chapel where we were assembled,
then welcomed loud startling shouts making us tremble.
Surprised, we looked up to see people come forth,
from dark corners as they would yell, “Happy Fourth!”
The “Fourth Day” had started and never would end,
these veteran SEARCHERS were now our new friends.
As marks of remembrance—in no way of loss,
around our necks team members placed the SEARCH cross.
At three in the morning were bangs on my door,
And in came team members wishing me Happy Fourth!
I knew that this certainly was not in vain,
but—wow! Were they nuts? They’d been out in the rain!
The hugs and warm smiles were exchanged then and there,
how could one not know that these people did care?
And that is how we became sisters and brothers,
a family called SEARCH which could never be smothered.
©Copyright 2023 by Michael Vassallo
Bio: Michael C. Vassallo lives in Long Island, New York, with his beautiful wife and two beautiful children. He has worked in the corporate world for over 20 years but has always loved writing. Michael graduated from Villanova University in 1999, where campus ministry changed his life, still impacting him today. Besides his family and writing, he loves the Catholic faith, music, movies, exercise, great jokes, Philadelphia day trips, and Home Depot.
Featured image of Philadelphia, PA by Bruce Emmerling from pixabay.com
