Hey Angel!,
My wife and I are walking in 2016 too. We too are Catholic and intend for this to be a simple and spiritual journey. We will both be in our 50's by then and we intend to spend 7 days walking on the Camino. We are going to walk slow, hold hands, and spend a lot of time reminding ourselves how lucky we are to have this wonderful life. It's a simple plan. Not a whole lot of details involved, I know.
It's taken me a couple of weeks to come full circle. I came here wanting nothing more than to buy "the best backpack" that I could find, and possibly hit the finish line in Santiago de Campostella while earning a gold medal. Lots of people waving and telling me how wonderful I look in a pancho. But a strange thing happened when I joined this forum. I took a deep breath. I read about the gorgeous human beings that donate their time to serve the peregrinos. I read about people ripping pages out of their guide books so they didn't have to carry as much weight. Hand washing their underwear and because it wasn't dry by morning, hanging it from their backpack while they walk. The whole spirit of the trip started to change. It was always meant to be a spiritual adventure for my wife. Truthfully, for me, it would have been a walking adventure with amenities of comfort sprinkled in. I'm now, not sure where we will begin, where we will end, where we will sleep, or eat. I am sure of one thing. My faith has lead me here. For that I am grateful. I'll trust that no decision on the Camino will likely be a life or death one. It's a beautiful, and hopefully cleansing, walk.
thanks for sharing your story. it inspired me to open up more than I have previously.
as the others say so graciously, "Buen Camino".