Not to Arrive Somewhere-But to Understand Something

In a few weeks, I will begin walking 800 kilometers across Spain.

Not to arrive somewhere-but to understand something.

For centuries, people have walked the nearly 800 km. Camino de Santiago. Once, it was mostly a religious journey. Today, it has become something more- a path of longing, searching, and quiet courage.

People arrive carrying invisible stories:grief, loss, pain, anxiety over transition, unanswered questions…and a hope- sometimes fragile-that something might shift along the way.

I will soon be walking this path myself. I will be a “pilgrim” 100%-I’m not going as a tourist.

I’m going because life has asked something of me.

We have all had past or present periods of difficulty, loss, change, and a deep search for meaning. And like so many others, I am walking with questions of my own. But what draws me most is the people I will meet-strangers who, on this path, become open, real, and deeply human.

I hope to listen. Deeply. I don’t know who they are now and what they will bring but I know that it will happen. The Camino is a magnet for this all around.

And with their permission, I will gather these stories-of pain, resilience, hope, and meaning and shape them into a book. A companion for those standing at a crossroads, a place to go to when the path of life gets rough, tough, muddled and painful. A “living handbook” replete with tools, research, reflections and many powerful stories of “choosing life” in the most difficult and challenging times. I hope that this book will be used in a practical way, as a reminder that even in difficult times, something within us still reaches forward.

This journey will not end when the walking ends. In many ways, that is where the real work begins.

If this speaks to you-if you believe in the power of human stories, hope, and the deep power of search for meaning and purpose in life,

I would be grateful for your support. Only if this resonates of course.

I put together this little campaign (now nearing the 50% mark, 50% more to go), to facilitate the long haul during and mostly after the pilgrimage. Any sum will be appreciated, and only if it feels “right” for you to do so. Thank you for walking with me, in your own way. I am excited and still have 6 weeks to go.

I will be doing this totally "alone", carrying my pack, making all arrangements solo, sleeping mostly in simple "albergues"( traditional pilgrimage hostels housing tens to hundreds of fellow walkers, on a bunk bed with shared bathrooms). I will be out the door around 6 am, walking 15-25 or more kilometers daily, in bed by 900 or 1000 pm, day after day. I will do this, hopefully in good health, for about 30-35 days. Will it be more or less?

I will be alone but I am certain that I will not be alone at all. I will be with the life and breadth of nature and the life of the Camino, " the way". Millions have done it before me, I will not be a wilderness explorer, that's for sure. Tens of thousands will be on this 780 or so km stretch at the same time.

And here is the beauty and purpose of it all: the uncertainty of whom I will meet, what I will learn, what I will find out, who might

inspire me and to whom might I give inspiration to?

So there you have it, this is what I know. And that there will no doubt be all kinds of aches and pains. They will come and...my hope is that they will leave as well. Such is the nature of this path, this pilgrimage.

I will be 67 years and 3 days in this world when I embark. This too I know. In so many ways, this will be a continuation of the study, work, purpose and direction my life has taken. To explore, immerse, learn, express and share around hope, meaning, purpose and growth in our lives, regardless of the challenge and crises we meet on the way...

I will be honest, I feel the excitement growing every day as the calendar moves just a bit closer and closer. Am I ready? What does "ready" mean, can one actually "get ready" for such a journey that definitely includes- and transcends- the physical, psychological, emotional, spiritua, social and financial?

https://whydonate.com/fundraising/walking-toward-hope-a-companion-for-hope-and-meaning-