The Real Journey Behind My Camino

Over the years - through thousands of hours of coaching, group facilitation, workshops, deep conversations, traveling the world, learning different cultural and philosophical approaches to life, and listening to people’s lives across many countries and cultures - I have noticed something very human:

When people get thrown off balance by life, they often do not know where to turn.

A relationship breaks down.

Illness arrives.

Loss.

Burnout.

Loneliness.

Retirement.

Aging.

War and terror.

Trauma.

A major life transition.

A collapse of certainty or identity.

And suddenly even strong and capable people can find themselves asking:

“Who am I now?”

“How do I start over?”

“What meaning can I find in this?”

“Who am I if I am no longer the person I used to be?”

“Who am I now that I am growing older?”

“Will I ever feel like myself again?”

Some people find support through therapy, coaching, support groups, or spiritual practice - and these can be deeply valuable. I certainly know this from personal experience as well.

But many people never reach those places.

Sometimes they cannot afford it.

Sometimes they do not know how to ask for help.

And sometimes there is simply too much noise - too many books, podcasts, videos, and “solutions” - and when a person is truly struggling, all of it can feel distant and overwhelming.

This is part of what inspired me to begin dreaming about creating what I call a “Living Companion for Hope and Meaning.”

Not a quick self-help book.

Not slogans or easy answers.

But something deeply human, practical, reflective, accessible, and alive.

A companion filled with stories, reflections, wisdom, research, conversations, and practical tools that may help people reconnect with meaning, courage, direction, and hope during difficult times.

What do I mean by “tools”?

Simple, grounded things people can actually use:

• Reflection questions

• Journaling exercises

• Breathing or grounding practices

• Meaningful conversations

• Small concrete actions for difficult moments

• Stories that help people feel less alone

For example:

“What is one small thing still worth getting up for tomorrow morning?”

Some of these stories will come from people I meet while walking the Camino de Santiago this summer.

Others will emerge from years of listening to human beings struggle, heal, search, and grow across many different life situations and cultures.

The project will also weave together ideas from hope research, logotherapy, wisdom studies, aging, existential psychology, my own life journey, and my doctoral work on second-generation Holocaust survivors.

In many ways, this Companion feels like the natural continuation of the work I have been doing for years.

A few people have asked about the small campaign I recently opened.

The campaign is not really about “funding a Camino trip.”

Rather, it is about helping support the long-term creation of this project - a project that I hope will slowly germinate during the Camino itself and then be written and developed more fully in the year afterward.

This is truly a work of the heart for me.

My hope is eventually to make this Companion accessible to people regardless of their financial means, because I believe many people today are carrying enormous burdens quietly and alone.

Thank you to everyone already encouraging, supporting, believing in, and walking beside me in this journey - even at this early stage.

I truly hope to bring this Companion into the world in the years ahead.

The campaign will close in 4 days.

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