A Trip Combining Religion and Art - Stockbridge, Ma

Mairead has wanted to go to the Divine Mercy Shrine for a long time.  I was off this past week, and she was on April school break from Perkins School for the Blind. Originally I had thought of a day trip to Stockbridge - Dan wanted to see the Norman Rockwell Museum, Mairead wanted to see the Divine Mercy Shrine, and I was interested in Norman Rockwell and the Stations of the Cross at the Shrine.

Dan meanwhile invited me to travel with him to Seattle in June, and I hadn’t heard from Mairead so I put a trip to the Berkshires on a back burner to save my money for the Pacific Northwest.

Then Mairead explained to me that this was THE Divine Mercy Weekend at the Shrine - it was a 3 day event culminating on Sunday. She said that she had to be back to work on Sunday at 2pm so that day was out. Saturday had conferences - she was not sure she was interested in those so we decided to drive up Friday for the Rosary, Mass, and Divine Mercy Service. My plan was for her to take the bus to the Cape on Wednesday or Thursday, and we could leave from here around 8 am on Friday morning.

But, the best laid plans are always subject to change. She was attending a benefit Wednesday night for the two Boston firefighters killed at the fire on Beacon Street. She had plans for Thursday night until 8 pm. 

Meanwhile Mike was staying in Falmouth for a couple of days but had an interview Friday morning at 9 am in Boston and had no car. So Mairead offered to pay for a room in Stockbridge if I drove up on Friday morning.

Mike and I left the house at 6:15 am on Friday - thankfully Mike drove. There was no traffic until we hit the expressway, but we still managed to make it to his job interview an hour early! I drove to Watertown - got gas and went to the bank - and was sitting in the Perkins parking lot at 8:30. On my 3rd call Mairead finally woke up!! We hit the Mass Pike at 9:15. 

I was impressed with the two rest areas that we visited. Nice, clean environment with friendly people working there. Nothing like Burger King on route 24 in Bridgewater! Good start to the trip.

I hadn’t bothered to take directions so we just kept driving along the Mass Pike. I don’t think I had been out this way since I went with Hannie and Norman to visit Chris Navin in the seminary. They took me and Mary Patricia along with them.  Had the Mass Pike even been built about 1966? I didn’t actually realize how close to New York we were going until we got off at Exit 2.

We were saying, as we drove along route 102, that this part of the journey reminded us of route 28 in Wareham - small houses, some businesses, not too busy.

We drove into Stockbridge on the main street - reminded me of a small village in Ireland. We turned left at the Red Lion Inn where we were going to stay. The intersection was a 3 way stop - not even a traffic light - I had no stop sign on my side. We drove down the street  - surprised at how big the Red Lion Inn is!! We turned around at the train depot - it didn’t look like it was open - do trains even run on those tracks? I could just picture years ago when people took the train to Stockbridge and stayed at the Inn. We saw several inns as we  explored - as well as some big older houses - gorgeous. We took a left when we got back to Main street and drove out to the Country Club and back.

Train Depot

Then we headed towards the Shrine. It was about 12:30. We took a left when we should have gone right as we went up the hill. We passed Naumkeag - it is all fenced off as it is being renovated. It reminds me of the “cottages” in Newport - a huge, fancy summer home - quite amazing!

We turned right onto the back driveway into the Shrine - lovely setting. I had read on the website that there was no parking in the main lot - there would be designated parking areas with shuttles to the Shrine. But we pulled right into the main parking lot - hardly a car was there. 

We walked over to the Gift Shop to see if they had a schedule of today’s events. Mairead spent almost an hour poking around inside. I sat outside and enjoyed the beautiful sunny day - all the while wondering where all the people were - the girl in the gift shop told me that they expected 24,000 people!  There weren’t even a few hundred wandering around today.

When Mairead was ready, we walked to the Shrine. We passed tents set up for Adoration, Food, Medical Care/Hospitality, Mass. They would be used Saturday and Sunday. There were hundreds of portapotties - a necessity for sure with the crowd expected but still an eyesore.

The Shrine was much smaller than I expected - and very ornate. We arrived just in time for the Rosary at 1:30 - the sorrowful mysteries. This seemed comforting since Easter was last week, and I had recently seen The Resurrection cantata performed. 

Mass followed immediately at 2 pm - the celebrant gave a nice sermon pertaining to the reading and Gospel. I like it when I get something out of the sermon. I've found that, during the last couple of years, I have been questioning what I believe in. I had great faith as a child. I was positive that the Blessed Mother appeared to me in 2nd grade as we prayed the Rosary - the nun told us to concentrate on what we were doing - I had my eyes closed - suddenly Mary was there.  

We lived beside St. Patrick's Church until we moved when I was in 5th grade. I would go to Mass every morning in May and October for the Blessed Mother. I can still smell the incense from the 8 am children's Mass on Sundays. The smell would make me feel faint - that is when we fasted from midnight.

Now I often find that I don't get anything out of going to Mass - I am just going through the motions. I wonder if there really is a heaven - is there a God - is there an after life - how could Jesus rise from the dead? Or is this all over when we close our eyes for the last time? 

I believe everyone should try to lead a good life - help others in need, treat others as I would want to be treated. But I am not sure about this heaven business - and I definitely do not believe in hell. I do believe in spirits - especially as I learn about family members as I research family history. Sometimes I feel they are right here with me.

So this is another reason I went to the Divine Mercy Shrine - to try to get some of my mojo back.

The bells of the Shrine ring at 3 pm every day, and everyone gathers for the Divine Mercy Chaplet. I was very interested in this since I really didn’t know that much about it. I did get up after Mass for a quick look into a side altar - when I got back to the bench, two people had moved in beside Mairead. They let me back in, but we were so squashed!! Then I started that darn dry cough - even with a cough drop already in my mouth!! I had to climb out over the two who had just let me back into the bench. I coughed my way out of the Shrine and down the stairs. Ohh for a bottle of water!!

When I recovered from that fit, I couldn’t go back inside - the service had started and it was three deep at the back of the church. So I walked the outdoor Stations of the Cross - these were the other reason that I came. The figures are fairly new and are life size in a dark/black material. It was a beautiful day to walk the Stations - the sun was shining, it was warm but there was a slight breeze. The carving or sculpting of the figures was so lifelike!! They were so compelling! I took pictures of each Station but it was so bright that a lot did not come out well. Here are the best of the bunch.

2nd Station - Jesus has been condemned to death and is carrying his cross to Golgotha.

3rd Station - Jesus falls the first time.

6th Station - Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

9th Station - Jesus falls a 3rd time.

10th Station - Jesus is stripped of his clothes.

11th Station - Jesus is nailed to the Cross.

12th Station - Jesus dies on the Cross.

I went back to the Shrine and sat outside in Blessed John Paul II plaza. I could hear the prayers and hymns from inside the Shrine. People were coming up taking pictures of the statue of Pope John Paul II with his arms outstretched. That pose reminded me of when Mairead, the Breens and I were in Rome with the Resurrection group from St. Patrick’s Church in Watertown. Mairead, the Breens, and I would go every night to St. Peter’s Square where Pope John Paul would appear on his balcony. We were there for his final appearance - he went into the hospital while we were there. We still went to St. Peter’s for another night or two before we left for home - it was lonely looking up at the balcony and no "Papa."

Here in Stockbridge, people were kissing their fingers and then touching John Paul’s statue or kissing the statue itself. People were talking about him and Pope John XXIII being declared saints on Sunday.

From the Shrine, I could hear them singing the Tantum Ergo and Holy God We Praise your Name - I love these hymns! 

Mairead said that there was a relic of St. Faustina that was displayed after the Chaplet. St. Faustina was a Polish nun who had conversations with and visions of Jesus in the 1920s and 1930s which she recorded in her diaries. Jesus spoke of his Divine Mercy - the purposes of the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy, which is a shorter prayer said on rosary beads, are to obtain mercy from Jesus, to trust in His mercy, and to show mercy to others.

Mairead walked the Stations of the Cross, and then we headed for the Red Lion Inn. We found a parking spot out front, and the car never moved from that spot. The porch of the Inn is famous - I read that someone once said that if you sat on the front porch long enough, then eventually you would see everyone of any importance. It is lined with rocking chairs and wicker furniture.

The Inn is full of antiques and old paintings. The tea pot collection especially caught my attention. The desk clerk was very pleasant, and we were checked in quite quickly. He reminded us that the room came with a continental breakfast that would be served in the main dining room.

Fireplace in the lobby.

We walked up the stairs to our second floor room. The floors are warped in the halfway and creak as you step on them. Some of the doors to other rooms are slightly lopsided. 

When we got to Room 222 (my address back on Main Street when I lived in Watertown,) we could not unlock the door. We fiddled around with the key, and Mairead finally got it open. The room was bright with two twin beds.

After we checked out the room, we decided we needed something to eat. We had arrived at the Shrine at 12:30 and stayed there until almost 5pm. So we decided to just eat downstairs in the tavern or pub. One problem though - we couldn’t lock the door. We were fiddling again with the lock when I spied a staff person talking with two women down the hallway. I ran down - I had met the two women at the Shrine - I had taken their pictures with Pope John Paul II. They said they were here for the weekend. The fellow from the hotel checked our door and told us that he would get a new lock and new keys while we were having dinner.  Just like that - he apologized and took care of it. 

Then he took us downstairs on the old fashioned elevator which is located beside the stairs. I hadn’t been on one of those since I did private duty for Mrs. Land on Brattle Street in Cambridge - her husband had invented the Polaroid Land camera.

We headed downstairs to the Lion’s Den Pub since the Tavern didn't open for another 18 minutes at 5:30. The hostess was very friendly - there were a few people at the bar and a couple of tables were taken. The pub was very cozy - had a nice bar area - a fireplace - tables and chairs as well as booths along the walls. They have entertainment nightly. I was trying to figure out if the ceiling was made of tin, but forgot to check it out when we were leaving.

Our waitress was a very friendly 20-something. Mairead ordered a home made hot dog while I ordered a turkey and stuffing sandwich with the cranberry mayo on the side. Mairead's dish came out with 2 extra long hot dogs, home made potato chips, and a small salad. My sandwich was big enough for the two of us - with real turkey - not deli meat! And the cranberry mayo was delicious!

A couple sat down in the booth behind Mairead. They recognized us from the Shrine - I suppose they recognized me from my hacking cough!! They said they drove up from Westerly, Rhode Island for the day - every year they go to the services at the Shrine, walk around the grounds, go out to eat, and then drive home. Like everyone else they were very friendly. Their waitress was the twin sister of our waitress - our waitress was pregnant, theirs wasn't.

I was stuffed after this delicious supper - I could hardly move. But we decided to waddle down Main Street while it was still daylight since rain was forecasted for tomorrow. 

Most of the stores were closed - it was close to 6 pm. The General Store was closed, but the Country Store was open. We poked around - it was a gift shop - they had some very nice things.  I bought some magnets of Stockbridge - I always like to get a magnet when I visit some place new. 

Below, the Country Store is the beige building between the white General Store and the former town offices in the brick building.

Former Stockbridge Fire Station on Elm Street - now it has been converted into a cottage for the Red Lion Inn - you can stay here.

House on Main Street

When we arrived back at the Inn, Mairead wanted to relax a while  in the room. I took my computer and went down to sit on that famous front porch. There were not so many people sitting there now, but people were laughing and talking - some had cocktails. I was starting this blog when I was suddenly attacked by mosquitoes!! I couldn't believe it. I put on my sweater to keep them off my arms. Eventually, I became tired of whishing them off my face.

View from where I was being eaten by mosquitoes.

View from my seat on the porch. That is my red Corolla parked on the street.

There is a second Lion on the other side of the entry way.

I decided to sit in the lobby for a while. The Main Dining Room is off the lobby so there were people waiting for tables. In a room off the lobby, a woman was playing the piano. It was lovely and relaxing.

Eventually I went upstairs to see if Mairead wanted to go to the Lion's Den to hear the duo that were playing there. There is entertainment nightly 8 pm to 11 pm. The gal came to turn down the beds. We interrogated her about Stockbridge - yes, she liked her job. No, there is no supermarket in Stockbridge. No, there is not much for young people to do in the evening. She was married. She was a nice girl but was probably wondering who these two were with all the questions!

I made the mistake of stretching out on the bed. An hour later, I took a shower. We were sharing a bathroom with the other rooms on this wing. So I took a shower in case everyone was in the bathroom in the morning.

We hung out in the room. I finally started falling asleep.

Saturday morning we went downstairs to the main dining room for breakfast. The room came with a continental breakfast. We showed the waiter the yellow card - he told us that it entitled us to $14 off the bill. Mairead ordered Texas Style French Toast. My apple pancakes needed 15 minutes to cook so we got a carrot, apple, zucchini muffin which was huge and absolutely delicious. Mairead's French Toast tasted great - my pancake was cooked a little too much but was good. The waiter was very attentive. And like everyone else, he thanked us for coming to the Inn and wished us a good day.

We looked around the first floor at all the antiques and went to the gift shop. There was so much to see! - I have to go back again to see more of it.

We hated to check out but managed to do it - only took seconds. Then we headed for the Norman Rockwell Museum. This was a couple of miles from the Inn. It was cloudy and misty. 

I have to say that I was disappointed that there were not more works by Rockwell. Two rooms had works by other artists which were nice, but I had thought there would be more Rockwells. I was disappointed but not surprised because I had read this on www.tripadvisor.com. I got $1 off the $16 admission by showing my AAA card - that didn't make me feel any better. One room had the Four Freedoms - paintings inspired by FDR's speech.  There were a few magazine covers from different magazines - mostly the Saturday Evening Post.  It was interesting to se the evolution of a couple of the Rockwell paintings - the earlier ones had the initial sketchings that Norman Rockwell painted from and the later ones had photographs that he used.

We decided to hit the road when we left the museum. It was still cloudy and misty. We passed through Stockbridge again on the way to the Mass Pike - pass the Congregational Church where the conferences for the Divine Mercy weekend were taking place - we could see cars and buses parked. We also passed the Mission House - another famous landmark. 

I drove to Watertown to drop Mairead off and take some of her winter clothes down to my house. Then I headed home to the Cape after a lovely weekend with my favorite daughter!