I fell asleep last night at 7:30 so here I am wide awake at 5:30AM and the clocks changed last night so maybe it is only 4:30AM.
Today is my last day on the Camino de Santiago. Twelve days, alone, moving on the path, experiencing whatever shows up, uninterrupted, unhurried. This morning there is gratitude to everyone who supported me on this trek; to everyone I met along the way and to God for my health and ability to put one foot in front of the other for 11 days, so far.
As a peregrino you are comfortable wherever you are because everyone gets you. You don’t need to explain your strange clothes and your unkempt hair. It is about far more than your appearance. People in the Camino towns know what you are about, for these days; they understand the why of you in their space.
Peregrino Statue at Cabo Fisterre
You have nothing to explain or excuse, you are mercifully free of the opinions and judgments of others. Oh I don’t imagine you really are completely free but that is your perception. I am sure the locals chat together and have a laugh over some of the get ups or they grumble about the noise and chatter of the groups but as you walk you are in this free space that quite frankly I have never felt before.
It is as if all the folks along the Camino work together to support the journeys of the peregrinos and they bring their heart to this work, how fortunate are we to experience this.
I am torn to leave the simplicity of the days here, the damp autumn smells of the paths, the vibration of ancient travelers that I feel beneath my feet, the sight of the sun filtering down between the trees and the morning mist rising in the valleys.
I have found a new strength on this journey
I have found the ability to live with my self perceived flaws
I have found great peace in the simplicity of the routine of a Camino day
I have found comfortableness in my own skin that I have never known
I have found a new faith in life here. There has been the sighting of perfection in its beauty and its pain. I understand just a tiny bit more about how it all works, us and this – all of it.
Gracias maravilloso Camino!
