Ruminations of an Amateur Monastic
Of the 30,000 or so steps we took today to arrive in Portomarín, these 58 were probably the most difficult, coming as they did at the end of the day. The Camino climbs these steps into the town. They are made from the remaining stones of the ancient Roman bridge that used to cross the river here. Speaking of bridges, […]
» Read moreWe left the village of Samos as the clocks were striking 8 AM. First, the monastery bells, then a moment later the clocktower at the town hall, and finally a distant church. Most of the day’s walk was through a tapestry of forest and farmland. It was absolutely lovely. Magical. We passed through innumerable places that explored the hazy difference […]
» Read moreToday we walked about 17 km from Filloval to Samos. Last night’s sleep was a little rough thanks to a German pilgrim with a mighty snore! So we started late and sauntered through a haunting forest landscape dotted with tiny rural villages and tottering ruins. It began raining about noon, and by the time we arrived at Samos in the […]
» Read moreDistances on the Camino are often a matter of conjecture rather than fact. For example, according to the Michelin map today we walked 16.9 km. The guidebook pegs it at 16.5 km. My Fitbit, on the other hand, puts it closer to 21 km. In any case, we are in the tiny hamlet of Filloval. And when I say tiny, […]
» Read moreAfter three days of airplanes, buses, and one miraculous taxi, we have finally arrived at the start of our pilgrimage. Francine in the baptistery of the church in O Cebreiro It is late in the evening on the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. We have obtained our pilgrim shells, and we attended Mass in the local church of Santa […]
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The tradition that Saint Francis of Assisi made the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela is found in some of the earliest hagiographies of the saint. The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, composed in the 14th century, says this: Saint Francis of Asissi In the first beginning of the Order, when there was as yet but few brothers and no convents […]
» Read moreIt is the eleventh hour of our twenty-hour Atlanta layover. We spent much of it getting our Madrid boarding passes, getting to a hotel, and sleeping. Our Atlanta greeter Before that, however, and before our flight, our Camino began with one of those crazy bits of rhyme the Lord seems to love throwing our way. We took a Lyft to […]
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Give me my scallop shell 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. (from “The Passionate Man’s Pilgrimage”, attributed to Sir Walter Raleigh) (Originally posted to Pilgrims on the Way.)
» Read moreWe thought we’d try something new. This is a (rather disjointed) attempt to put together a video about how we train for the Camino. I blather, Francine makes funny faces, and we walk. And eat second breakfast. Our Training plan for 2016. (Originally posted to Pilgrims on the Way.)
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Just after the Noon Mass at our parish of Holy Rosary, Deacon Jim Fish bestowed the traditional Pilgrims’ Blessing on Francine and I – not to mention our “rucksacks”, “staves”, and shell and rosary. The blessing itself is ancient. In its current form it appears the Missal of Vich Cathedral, Barcelona, Spain, dated to AD 1078. We’re extremely grateful to […]
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We leave for Spain on Tuesday, and we’ve definitely entered into scramble mode. Equipment purchases, refinements, and testing has gone on for months, but it always seems like there’s something breaking or not working at the last minute. Our rigourous training schedule has gone by the boards this week due to increasingly frantic work pressures. And of course, there’s always […]
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Prior to each of our previous Camino pilgrimages, I’ve tried to articulate why it is that we walk. Everybody’s answer is, of course, different. It has ever been thus. Before my first Camino, I had this sense that God was calling me to it, and maybe that was enough of a reason. Maybe it was partly the sense of adventure […]
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After walking the Camino Francés in 2013 from Roncesvalles and in 2016 from St Jean, Francine and I were busy planning our next Spanish adventure for 2020. The plan was that I would walk the Francés from St Jean (or possibly Lourdes), while she took a flat in Burgos to work on her historical romance book about the Camino. When […]
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Today is the Feast of Saint James the Greater, known throughout the Spanish-speaking world as Santiago. He was one of Christ’s Twelve Apostles. He is the patron saint of the archdiocese of Seattle, and therefore today is a solemnity within the archdiocese. I am saddened that no Tacoma parish seems to be celebrating an evening Mass for this occasion. Edited: […]
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When Francine and I finished our Camino in 2016, I began a project on my Camino blog to post the best of my Camino photos, one day at a time. The “Camino Photo of the Day” project has been running since July 6 of 2016, so today marks its two year anniversary. The end is in sight, as we are […]
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As we approach the town of Villafranca del Bierzo, we pass through an old farmstead that includes this building. I want to say something about this, because while it is an extreme example, you see this sort of thing all over the Camino. Indeed, in a sense you see this wherever humans live. Was the original wall medieval, or was […]
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Last weekend, my beautiful bride Francine and I did some walking, and it got me to thinking about the spirituality of walking. I’m always amazed at what you can accomplish by walking. Modern psychologists say that walking makes us smarter, but the idea is hardly original to them. Solvitur ambulando – It is solved by walking. (Saint Augustine) This is […]
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