Consolations and Graces
It’s one month since we arrived in Santiago de Compostela as pilgrims for the third time. Every pilgrimage is different. You’re a different person with different concerns and worries and joys each time. And the Lord gives you different graces and consolations each time.
It normally takes me a month or longer to process our Caminos. Re-entry is difficult. This year was no exception, though it didn’t seem quite as rough as in previous years. Is that because I’m getting used to this process? Or is because our Camino was much shorter than in previous years? I don’t know.
This Camino was different from the others – and not just in length. Spain suffered a heatwave during the summer. Pilgrim numbers were down about 20% in July and August. The entirety of this deficit – and more – was made up for in September.
We’ve never seen the Camino so crowded. Even before Sarria, it seemed like wall-to-wall pilgrims.
We did have a couple of quiet days – the day from Triacastela to Samos being the most serene as the route wandered through deep forest past tiny villages that were sometimes little more than a house or two and a name on a sign. Those were the times I could think and pray and walk the pilgrim’s path.
The other thing that was odd is that we never really developed a Camino family. There were a number of folks we walked with for a day or two, but it was just a handful. Because of our pace, we never really managed to fall in with a larger group.
The most amazing reunion we had in Santiago was with somebody we met on our 2016 Camino, who had just finished walking the Portuguese.
So it was a very different Camino.
It’s said that the Lord doesn’t always give you what you want, but He does give you what you need.
It’s no secret that this has been a difficult year. A quick look at some of my Camino prayers will help bring you up to speed.
And recently, there’s been a new development: our parish church of Holy Rosary had a chunk of plaster fall from the ceiling into the choir loft. The building has been shut down pending an inspection.
Due to extensive water damage in the church, engineers and architects must conduct a series of tests to determine if the church building is safe, and what it will take to repair it.
Weekend Masses will be held in the School Auditorium at the regular Mass times until further notice.
(from the web site)
So did the Camino provide a place of serenity in the midst of the whirling chaos of this year?
Well, yes and no.
The Camino does provide those moments, but it also – and perhaps this year especially – provides lessons in carrying your own cross.
Both are necessary. Those moments of recollection and prayer when I feel particularly close to Jesus are a great consolation. But the shouldering of my cross, and helping others to shoulder theirs, is a thing that only comes with practice. And in these graces, the Camino abounds.
Note: The Camino Photo of the Day project will resume where it left off, probably next week.
(Originally posted to Pilgrims on the Way.)