Two More Sleeps!!

Good Grief!! Just yesterday, my friend Sharon & I were saying “one year from now we will be walking on the Camino”. All of a sudden it is “two more sleeps” and we’ll leave for the Camino. Where did the time go? We fly out of Portland, OR on Friday and will land in Madrid on Saturday morning & take a bus to Pamplona. We’ll be in Pamplona for a day and then take a bus or a taxi to SJPdP. After a day in SJPdP, we start walking. As you can see, we’ve given ourselves plenty of time to adjust to the time change and jet lag. After all, we both are older than dirt! On May 14th we walk out of SJPdP and will walk into Santiago on June 25th. After a day of rest, we’ll walk on to Finistere and Muxia. We’ve given ourselves six glorious weeks to walk through time and history. We fly home on July 8th.

I started planning this pilgrimage after returning from walking 230 miles on the Camino in 2012. I came home feeling as if I’d left something very important unfinished and felt compelled to go back and finish it. I wonder if “it” will ever be finished. I have not wished the time away by saying “I can’t wait”. I have instead savored the planning and the anticipation. The closer it got, anxiety and excitement entered the mix. Now it’s all anxiety and excitement. Once there, I will savor every step as I walk through time and history. I’ll savor every pilgrim met along the way and treasure every friendship made. Above all, I will savor the time walking in solitude.

To all pilgrims starting around the same time...I’ll see you soon!! Maybe you’ll help me celebrate my birthday (the 43rd anniversary of my 29th birthday ) on June 14th somewhere along the way. Buen Camino!