MKalcolm M
Solvitur ambulando - It is solved by walking
- Time of past OR future Camino
- north route spring 2013
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Yeah, but a bottle of Rioja wine costs about $12 here!and....I also peruse the Spanish and Portuguese wine section at the grocery store to cheer myself up!
yes that is so true.....but its 10 times the cost by the time it hits our supermarket shelves in NZ.and....I also peruse the Spanish and Portuguese wine section at the grocery store to cheer myself up!
It's not?
- Thinking it's OK to go to work in hiking gear, as it's more comfortable.
It's not?
(Robo, you hit the nail squarely on the head....)
A beautiful reflection. Thanks so much for sharing!I often find myself making comparisons between what I am doing and how it would be on the Camino, similar to what @SabineP mentions above about the cost of a meal being able to support you several days on the Way. I have also noticed I no longer pack so much when going away and take just essentials when before I would always have checked luggage even just for a weekend away! My life, in general, has become uncluttered and I am contented so easily with the small but sweet things in life. I walk everywhere happily and drink wine from tumblers. And saying Hola instead of hello and Gracias-especially when out for a meal....so weird.
Perhaps the real difference for me is the self-confidence I developed and how I am now able to manage my anxiety better by lessons I learnt on the Camino. If you will indulge me, the following is from my journal entry when I walked from Santo Domingo to Belorado. It is self-explanatory as to why it has helped me but it still makes me thankful that the Camino can gift us with life changing experiences and realisations. My life is so much easier since I learnt that I can actually make that journey in life and day after day get to where I am meant to be.
It is said that the Camino Santiago is a metaphor for life, that the events and realisations you have while walking The Way are a reflection of yourself and the life you lead.
It was extremely overcast as I left Santo Domingo and this, I would discover, made for pleasant walking without the ever present sun draining your energy. About 30 minutes into walking I noticed an intense silver lining illuminating some dark clouds that hugged the hills in the distant. The adage of every cloud has a silver lining sprang to mind and I began to wonder, what metaphors did the Camino hold for me.
Of course, the blatantly obvious ups and downs of life were comparable to the hills, mountains and valleys I crossed but within this lay a more subtle message for me.
I had developed a fear of the hills since my dismal failure on day one to complete the crossing of the Pyrenees and had begun to view each hill with dread and suspicion. But as I walked along I noticed that I was no longer having so much trouble to walk the undulating countryside. In fact, the hills I often saw in the distance and which cause me to panic were now tackled with ease as I realised that my walking had often been on a gentle rise so imperceptible that I hadn't noticed my reaching the top. What appeared in the distance to be a struggle was in fact quite manageable......maybe a huff or a puff, but nothing that I was unable to achieve.
I realised that this was also the way I saw my problems in life. I often concentrated so intensely on the future and its possible problems that I had literally made myself ill. Endless sleepless nights and stress filled days had made anxiety my master and I crumbled in insecurities achieving nothing. I failed then to see that when or if those difficulties actually arose I usually managed them quite well. My lesson from these hills.......live in the moment. Don't be fooled by what you think you see in your future. Don't automatically assume that situations will be insurmountable but remind yourself that just like the hills you now covered easily, so too could you manage any problems that come your way. Equally, don't cling to the past for that pàth has been tread. Look where you're standing or walking NOW, enjoy the view and know that what lays before you is a landscape you can indeed manage and often manage very well.
I am going to print this. Thank you for sharing.I often find myself making comparisons between what I am doing and how it would be on the Camino, similar to what @SabineP mentions above about the cost of a meal being able to support you several days on the Way. I have also noticed I no longer pack so much when going away and take just essentials when before I would always have checked luggage even just for a weekend away! My life, in general, has become uncluttered and I am contented so easily with the small but sweet things in life. I walk everywhere happily and drink wine from tumblers. And saying Hola instead of hello and Gracias-especially when out for a meal....so weird.
Perhaps the real difference for me is the self-confidence I developed and how I am now able to manage my anxiety better by lessons I learnt on the Camino. If you will indulge me, the following is from my journal entry when I walked from Santo Domingo to Belorado. It is self-explanatory as to why it has helped me but it still makes me thankful that the Camino can gift us with life changing experiences and realisations. My life is so much easier since I learnt that I can actually make that journey in life and day after day get to where I am meant to be.
It is said that the Camino Santiago is a metaphor for life, that the events and realisations you have while walking The Way are a reflection of yourself and the life you lead.
It was extremely overcast as I left Santo Domingo and this, I would discover, made for pleasant walking without the ever present sun draining your energy. About 30 minutes into walking I noticed an intense silver lining illuminating some dark clouds that hugged the hills in the distant. The adage of every cloud has a silver lining sprang to mind and I began to wonder, what metaphors did the Camino hold for me.
Of course, the blatantly obvious ups and downs of life were comparable to the hills, mountains and valleys I crossed but within this lay a more subtle message for me.
I had developed a fear of the hills since my dismal failure on day one to complete the crossing of the Pyrenees and had begun to view each hill with dread and suspicion. But as I walked along I noticed that I was no longer having so much trouble to walk the undulating countryside. In fact, the hills I often saw in the distance and which cause me to panic were now tackled with ease as I realised that my walking had often been on a gentle rise so imperceptible that I hadn't noticed my reaching the top. What appeared in the distance to be a struggle was in fact quite manageable......maybe a huff or a puff, but nothing that I was unable to achieve.
I realised that this was also the way I saw my problems in life. I often concentrated so intensely on the future and its possible problems that I had literally made myself ill. Endless sleepless nights and stress filled days had made anxiety my master and I crumbled in insecurities achieving nothing. I failed then to see that when or if those difficulties actually arose I usually managed them quite well. My lesson from these hills.......live in the moment. Don't be fooled by what you think you see in your future. Don't automatically assume that situations will be insurmountable but remind yourself that just like the hills you now covered easily, so too could you manage any problems that come your way. Equally, don't cling to the past for that pàth has been tread. Look where you're standing or walking NOW, enjoy the view and know that what lays before you is a landscape you can indeed manage and often manage very well.
Yeah, but a bottle of Rioja wine costs about $12 here!
Subtle Changes ? I wish
The Camino should carry a warning!
After undertaking this journey, Pilgrims may suffer from any or all of these effects:
- Not really caring about material 'stuff' any more.
- Being much more 'chilled' about life in general (dangerous for sales people with sales 'targets')
- Upsetting family by showing no interest in using holiday time....for 'holidays'
- Not able to walk past a gear store without checking out the latest boots, shirts...
- Spending way too much time on this Forum.
- Trying to work out, based on age and health, how many more Caminos might be possible
- Thinking it's OK to go to work in hiking gear, as it's more comfortable.
- Shunning any offered alcoholic drink unless it's Rioja.
- Basically........not being the same person at all.......
- And being perfectly happy with all of the above
Gerhard, not to be contrary, but this is NOT subtle.Without noticing it I have quit smoking! No problem. Have not touched a smoke in 4 months since my return from CF and don't miss it at all!!
Walking the Norte allowed me the space and time to face some big issues and make some life changing decisions, but after the camino I’ve also noticed some smaller influences as well.
I walked with a bamboo staff which I picked up in the alberge at Irun. After a time, it wore down and got shorter, so I selected another one from some fallen bamboo, and this accompanied me all the way to Santiago. Now, when I see a bamboo grove, rather than admire the aesthetics of the plant, I always start eyeing up which stem would make the best walking staff...
When I see distances on a sign, I can't stop converting miles to kilometers and working out how many days it would take to walk there.
Recently my 12 year old daughter and I walked the Portuguese camino. After we got back, she stepped on a wooden plank with a protruding nail in it, which went through the sole of her boot and into the ball of her foot. As we drove home from getting it checked at hospital, she told me that her first thought after the shock and pain of it was “But now my boot won’t be waterproof any more”, a concern which would never have occurred to her before the camino.
So what are the little ways in which the camino lives on for you?
Sorry, I don't buy it @domigee. I bet you're not.None, I am just as stupid as ever .That is why I need to keep on walking
ThanksGerhard, not to be contrary, but this is NOT subtle.
Wonderful.
Eehhh... She is just like me. Do not insult us...
Wonderful examples.
Some of mine :
Having to " quit " something in daily life , whatever the reason may be : it is ok. It is not a failure but selfknowledge.
When doing my daily walks : smile to everyone and say hi like on the Camino. Some locals might think you are mad but that doesn't matter.
Going for a fancy dinner : thinking how many days you could live from this money on a Camino.
After every Camino : the realisation that I have too much clutter in my house. So less is indeed more.
A beautiful reflection. Thanks so much for sharing!
I am going to print this. Thank you for sharing.
I hope you don't mind, but I posted it on my Facebook page and said I wished I had written it. I'd love to give you writing credit - is Havagrahidasa your last name? I read it out loud to my husband at dinner last night, and today when I went into worry mode (while having a lovely bike ride), I thought of your words and returned to the present moment of being in the park on a beautiful day. So thank you!!! I should have asked your permission to share on FB (hopefully I didn't break a forum rule), however, your reflections on how the Camino changed your perspective have already helped some of my friends who have never walked a Camino or been to Spain.Oh, you have made my day! Thank you and i am glad you enjoyed it. I have it stuck to my fridge to remind myself! All the best, Bryce
I hope you don't mind, but I posted it on my Facebook page and said I wished I had written it. I'd love to give you writing credit - is Havagrahidasa your last name? I read it out loud to my husband at dinner last night, and today when I went into worry mode (while having a lovely bike ride), I thought of your words and returned to the present moment of being in the park on a beautiful day. So thank you!!! I should have asked your permission to share on FB (hopefully I didn't break a forum rule), however, your reflections on how the Camino changed your perspective have already helped some of my friends who have never walked a Camino or been to Spain.If you want me to remove it, please let me know.
Ha! I don't buy that either. Bet you have.Haven't learnt anything
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