The next thing I learned is that if you move past the obligatory 'Buen Camino' greeting, and strike up a conversation with someone it will inevitably lead to the loaded question, 'so why are you here?' And so begins my story...

The next thing I learned is that if you move past the obligatory 'Buen Camino' greeting, and strike up a conversation with someone it will inevitably lead to the loaded question, 'so why are you here?' And so begins my story...

My next profound moment happened as the sun was rising and I was feeling pretty proud of myself for not losing my way on the first stretch of the morning. I was seeing the Camino signs left and right and my ego started telling me that there was no possible way you could get lost on this route, everything had been so clearly marked thus far, even in the forested part of the mountain.

I’ve now been on the Camino for a week, and while the early-on excitement of being a pilgrim has worn off some, each day has new things to show me and new people to meet. However, yesterday was the first day I didn’t take any photos, I was uninspired and was definitely focused on the destination not the journey. Some of the day I was walking through vineyards and green grassy hills, and other parts of the day I was on pavement alongside noisy highways. It gave me an appreciation for the forested beauty that was abundant in the first few days.

I’m now a third of the way into my Camino. They say that the first third is there to break you physically, and I definitely saw how this could happen! Today (Day 13) was my first day with minimal pain in my body. On reflection of what I’ve been through thus far on the Camino I see that sometimes you just have to be with raw, unyielding pain. Grief will also teach you this lesson. You can acknowledge the pain, but it’s when you indulge it that it turns to suffering.

I’ve now ‘graduated’ the meseta and am moving on toward Galicia, an autonomous region of Northwest Spain known for landscapes of extensive green forests and wooded valleys. I must bid farewell to the golden plains of the meseta that let my mind and body relax into a space of not being needed as much and surrender to another new stage of the Camino. 

This week I crossed another significant landmark on the Camino, the Cruz de Ferro. The tradition says to bring a rock from your home and place it on the pile, releasing what no longer serves you. They say the stone should be as big as your sorrows, guilt and anguish. I didn’t know this when I selected my tiny smooth red stone from the grotto in Aspen, but it subconsciously reaffirmed a thought I’ve been having a lot on my Camino - I no longer have to wait to be happy, or for my life to be easy, I AM happy and my life IS easy.

My last post was all about choosing to be happy, and being present with whatever emotion in a state of allowance and appreciation for the feeling. Well this sounds ideal in theory, it's not always so smooth in practice, which is why it's called practice! Over the last 24 hours I have been experiencing feelings of apathy, irritability and disorientation and have had to practice being in a state of acceptance for whatever shows up. I’m being challenged by an influx of people that join the Camino for the last 100km.

As I rounded the corner into the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral square there was a lone man playing the bagpipes, a melancholy soundtrack to my 30 day journey. My thoughts were ‘Wait, is this it? Should this feel more symbolic? Should I try to document this in a more meaningful way?’ I even back tracked and tried my entrance again to see if it would feel any different….it didn’t. I watched other pilgrims greeting another, hugging, capturing the moment in photos together with the Cathedral in the background.

I’ve now been on the Camino for a week, and while the early-on excitement of being a pilgrim has worn off some, each day has new things to show me and new people to meet. However, yesterday was the first day I didn’t take any photos, I was uninspired and was definitely focused on the destination not the journey. Some of the day I was walking through vineyards and green grassy hills, and other parts of the day I was on pavement alongside noisy highways. It gave me an appreciation for the forested beauty that was abundant in the first few days.

I’m now a third of the way into my Camino. They say that the first third is there to break you physically, and I definitely saw how this could happen! Today (Day 13) was my first day with minimal pain in my body. On reflection of what I’ve been through thus far on the Camino I see that sometimes you just have to be with raw, unyielding pain. Grief will also teach you this lesson. You can acknowledge the pain, but it’s when you indulge it that it turns to suffering.

I’ve now ‘graduated’ the meseta and am moving on toward Galicia, an autonomous region of Northwest Spain known for landscapes of extensive green forests and wooded valleys. I must bid farewell to the golden plains of the meseta that let my mind and body relax into a space of not being needed as much and surrender to another new stage of the Camino. 

My last post was all about choosing to be happy, and being present with whatever emotion in a state of allowance and appreciation for the feeling. Well this sounds ideal in theory, it's not always so smooth in practice, which is why it's called practice! Over the last 24 hours I have been experiencing feelings of apathy, irritability and disorientation and have had to practice being in a state of acceptance for whatever shows up. I’m being challenged by an influx of people that join the Camino for the last 100km.

As I rounded the corner into the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral square there was a lone man playing the bagpipes, a melancholy soundtrack to my 30 day journey. My thoughts were ‘Wait, is this it? Should this feel more symbolic? Should I try to document this in a more meaningful way?’ I even back tracked and tried my entrance again to see if it would feel any different….it didn’t. I watched other pilgrims greeting another, hugging, capturing the moment in photos together with the Cathedral in the background.