The idea of walking the Camino has been in my mind for a while now and I am so excited to have the opportunity to fulfil this dream. This week is the week that we get to tick '
The Camino' off our bucket list.
In truth, I can't tell you exactly when I first heard about the Camino de Santiago, but the very idea of going on this pilgrimage has remained in my heart for ages. Every person I have spoken to, who has walked a part of the Way, has beamed when relating their own experiences and I hope to be one of those people in the future.
For those of you who may not know too much about El Camino, it is quite simply a pilgrimage (usually walking) that ends up in the city of Santiago de Compostela, Spain. This is the place where the remains of James (Jesus' disciple, the son of Zebedee) are supposedly buried. When translated, the name Santiago de Compostela means 'Saint James, in the field of stars.'
Sounds simple hey? Well, not exactly ....
In order to officially complete the pilgrimage, you need to walk a minimum of 100km's on any of the official routes and end up in Santiago. We will be walking on the Camino Primitivo route, which is the original pilgrim route in Northern part of Spain, and we should be covering a distance of close on 250km's.
For us, the idea is to walk, to pray, to contemplate, to listen and to connect with God again. I know that one doesn't have to travel half-way around the world to do these things, but there is something special about doing it in the footsteps of millions of others.
I will try and write a little more in the next few days, before we leave, but I would appreciate your prayers as we head out into this great adventure. It is my prayer that we would have our own Emmaus Road encounter (Luke 24) - and meet Christ as we walk and reflect.
In 1604, Sir Walter Raleigh wrote:
"Give me my scallop of quiet,
my staff of faith to walk upon,
my scrip of joy, immortal diet,
my bottle of salvation,
my gown of glory, hope's true gage,
and thus I'll take my pilgrimage."
Living in Grace
D3LM3
