Step by Step

A great traveler…is a kind of introspective, as she covers the ground outwardly, so she advances fresh interpretations of herself inwardly.”

- Lawrence Durrell

I’ve seen many beautiful coastal vistas, watched so many surfers play in the frigid water, climbed up country trails, made friends with farm animals and found myself in more than a few really great cities. I’ve had fantastic meals and more bread than anyone should have in their lifetime!

I’ve posted pictures of all these things and the fun, interesting and amazingly positive people I’ve made friends with along the way. But at this point in my Camino adventure, I think you get the point.

There is also the miles of walking everyday and the decision day after day to do it. It goes beyond the blisters and sore body. For me the camaraderie with everyone else is what motivates me to walk a little more each day. Most days I just go without much thought at all but other days it takes the momentum of the group to keep me moving forward.

As we walk together we often share in the way that you really only can share with a stranger. These people are my confidantes, but because we also know that for the most part the friendships end at the end of the Camino. So for the time we are sharing we are philosophers, comedians, singers and more. At different times it's thought provoking, motivating, kind and entertaining.

We often talk about what we want from the experience. I've heard many times now that people tend to process the Camino in thirds, physically, mentally and spiritually. Today a young man said, he’d heard it was a 4 step journey. The first three remain the same but the 4th segment starts after you leave and this is your true Camino. I like that.

I’m not unusual in that I enjoy walking with my new friends and sometimes I really need them to help get me through. The physical can really take over all of my thoughts at times and that is when friends can be so helpful.

But I also enjoy my alone time. When I’m on my own I’m usually just inside my head, and I’m sorry to say that it’s mostly the same loops I always think about. With so much time to think, I am beginning to make small tweaks. I’m starting to look at things from a different perspective.

I feel braver than I was when I began.

I haven’t navigated anything super difficult but I’ve had to put myself in some uncomfortable situations and see my way through more than I’ve ever had to in such a small timeframe. Or at least since I was in my twenties. Which has made me think about how difficult that time of life can be. I don’t acknowledge that enough. I don’t tell the twenty-something’s in my life that I remember those stresses and to just hang in there. I hope I’ll be better about that. It’s a very tumultuous and stressful decade!

My best days on the Camino are an ebb and flow of solitude and togetherness.

Being in such tight quarters with so many people with different cultural backgrounds has also shifted some of my thinking about myself. For instance, I am learning to love my body. I’ve spent most of my life wishing I were a little bit thinner or that my features were different or I don’t know, I’ve just been very critical.

But this body of mine is taking me all the way across Spain. I’m strong and healthy and so fortunate for that. I hope I remember to treat her kindly and keep her healthy to the best of my ability going forward.

The camino is a journey of so many different aspects. I’m very grateful to have been able to join. It’s truly been a unique and beautiful experience.