On the Camino - day 1

(Preface: I have been hiking annually with a group of women who met in our national nursing organization. 2025 marked about 30 years, and we decided to make it especially memorable. With our limited time we chose 72 miles of Camino de Fraces in Galacia, Spain in pilgrimage to the Cathedral de Santiago. The Camino de Santiago is a spiritual journey that has been taken for centuries by thousands of pilgrims from across the world. Many walk to visit the Cathedral, which claims to hold the relics of the Apostle St. James. Others walk for spiritual guidance, personal reflection, or to connect more fully with nature. Our pilgrimage began as we arrived from 6 different states each for our own reason, reasons that would open us and open to us as we walked together.)

Sarria to Portomarín

It’s a beautiful day, off to a good start. The scenery is pastoral with a patchwork of trees and fields on rolling hills. Ahh to just breathe and walk. I enjoyed learning some history of Spain along the way. But I soon grew weary with frequent stops and “education” moments. Even conversations with my fellow peregrinas seemed to derail my anticipation of finding my own rhythm.

I am disgruntled. Certainly not a beautiful attitude to match the beautiful day. The anticipation I brought with me here feels thwarted. Or is it? Apparently I did have some expectation for how this journey would go. I wondered as I prepared for departure just 2 days before whether I would be able to let go of life’s concerns. As my cares slipped away, I found myself holding something else. Would I be able to loosen my grip to open my hands for what I might receive? The test came quickly.

Patience, Amy. And grace. The beginning of a pilgrimage requires unpacking. Finding a rhythm can take time when pulling away from the fast track. And connecting requires listening – with my friends and to the Camino. Walking with my annoyance, my resistance to accepting how this pilgrimage commenced emerged. The chatter. The frequent stops. The noise of my own resistance, ha! OK resistance, let’s walk together and loose our grip. Breathe. What a gift to lean into what I resist and discover the gifts it brings. The freedom of acceptance. Accepting the fullness of this day, identifying what is life-giving and what is life-draining. Choosing one and releasing the energy placed in the other.

The journey has begun.

In living a holistic life, I engage in a holistic faith in which i cannot compartmentalize
or separate the various parts of who I am or what I believe, which means journeying
must include all of me, all of us.
Kaitlin B. Curtice in
“Pilgrim: Identity, Belonging, and Rediscovering God”