CONTENTS PAGE: CAMINO STORIES

In these articles and anecdotes, a number of us write of our various experiences and the lessons that the camino journey imparted to us. Because the wisdom that is imparted by The Way is so personal, it is always a joy to share in other people's experiences. Somehow, through their steps and their recollections, we also gain something that transforms us. Long after the physical journey ended, I find myself returning to the memory imprinted in my mind, and each time that I do, the lessons deepen. There is so much that we learn that is stored for a time when we are ready to integrate the wisdom into our lives. Many walk the camino not really connecting with any 'lessons', but finding that many years later, it is the camino experience itself that has sustained them, strengthened them, given them the courage to see themselves and the world in a different light. Included amongst other people's stories are my thoughts and experiences. I hope you enjoy them!
​​Carrying My Burden: By Bryan Steward
Around three hundred miles into the French Way of the Camino de Santiago is a monument called Cruz de Ferro. In Camino tradition, when pilgrims arrive at this iron cross mounted atop a wooden pole, they place a rock at its base. This rock represents leaving behind a burden which one has carried with them from home. By the time I reached this spiritual site in September of 2017, my Camino had been filled with countless obstacles brought about by my added challenge of having Becker muscular dystrophy, a progressive neuromuscular disease. Read More
Giving In: by Mary Murphy
Over the next few days I crossed paths with different people as I began to find the rhythm of my Camino. ...As the morning wore on I felt more and more exhausted and said “I’m going to have to give in”.  As soon as I said it I knew that 'giving in'was about more than just taking a rest. I went to sit down and contemplated what else was meant by that statement...Read more
Choosing Vulerability: by Mary Murphy
When I decided to walk the Camino de Santiago, I was aware that I wanted to immerse myself in a holding container long enough for me to find out what is calling me. I had the sense that I was meant to be doing something else with my life and that I was holding back on what God had given me. In any event I knew my soul wasn’t being fully satisfied; there was a longing I needed to address. I hoped and indeed I expected the Camino to help me find the truth of that longing....Read more
Three ways to stay “IN BALANCE?” A Camino lesson! by Jim
Most people don’t even know when we’re out of whack, for me, not knowing was always my problem! So, I ask myself, “What is my stress level today?”We do need some stress in our lives, otherwise were not doing anything new.Stress is OK, so go ahead and breathe, just do not max out on it!

I also ask myself, “How did I sleep last night? Did I take my problems to bed with me? On the other hand, did I think about solutions and the way I want things to be; this works! Remember knowing when you are out of balance is the way to get into balance...Read More
Silence and Tears: by The Solitary Walker
I remember that first day on the Chemin very clearly. 17 October. Blue skies. Warm and sunny. The hills and valleys of the Auvergne. Wooded slopes and the golden leaves of autumn. Peaceful, deserted villages basking in the noonday sun. Romanesque churches with rounded stone vaulting. I kept bumping into pilgrims all day. Some shared their lunch with me as we picnicked on the grass in front of the Chapelle Saint-Roch (see photo).

By late afternoon I'd reached the village of Saint-Privat-d'Allier. It's stunningly situated on a volcanic cliff above a gorge of the Allier river. A Christian family took me in free for the night. "While you are here treat this house as your home," they said....
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A Journey Completed: by Yaz Rooney
Hello Friends! As you can see from my photos, I completed my pilgrimage from St. Jean de Pied de Port in France, to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. An 800 km walk, it took me 7 weeks to complete, and with immense gratitude in my heart, I am also able to say that I walked every step of the way without serious injury. I walked into Santiago de Compostela on the 21st June, an immense sense of peace settling around my heart. Every day, it terrified me that I would not be able to finish. Not once did I take it for granted that I would. The camino determines what you will accomplish, based on the human story that lies in your soul....
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The Burdens of The Mind: by Yaz Rooney
A ‘seeker’ for many years, one thing I quickly realized on my quest for spiritual truth was that authentic ‘learning’ is actually inner transformation. We may not always be aware what it is that we gain from an experience, yet something changes in the way that we go about life, and in the way that we make our decisions. If an experience alters the way we look at life, at each other, at our environment, if it moves our perspectives into a deeper mode of seeing (whether we are spiritual seekers, medical doctors, farmers, etc), then we have done more than just learn, we have become wiser. The camino journey had many lessons in store for me, and they started right away, as I began my 800 km trek.              Continue reading.....
The Road to Santiago: by Joyce and Evan Llewellyn
THERE are three questions hikers and pilgrims ask each other when walking the 1,600 kilometre Santiago de Compostela, or Camino, pilgrimage trail. Where are you from? How far have you walked? How are your feet?

A fourth question, "Why?" usually only comes after you've shared a bottle (or two) of wine at a crowded table, the exhaustion of the day almost forgotten in the well-being of a full stomach and the camaraderie around you....
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Ultreïa! by ThePaigePerspective
“Onward!”

I love words and I often find myself looking up word origins or the proper definition of a word. With that in mind, I am defining this current phase of my life as my mid-life catharsis and once I read the following I knew it was perfect.

Catharsis (from the Greek κάθαρσις katharsis meaning “purification” or “cleansing”) refers to the purification and purgation of emotions—especially pity and fear—through art[1] or to any extreme change in emotion that results in renewal and restoration.[2][3]

The last few years I have really started to distance my head from my heart and have found myself not really liking the person I have become...
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