Wisdom Gained

The path of the Camino is a long trail of old cathedrals, chapels, monasteries, convents and hostels that have provided refuge and hospitality for centuries. However, the Presence is not always felt in, nor contained by, these structures.  The cathedrals’ enormous altarpieces adorned with gold and alabaster sculpture, stained glass windows and hand-carved choir stalls are impressive works of art. There is also an acute reminder of the role that empire and wealth have played in our Church’s history. Noble men and women may be entombed in these places but not the poor and marginalized, in whom we are called to see Christ. 

We felt the Spirit with intensity and warmth in the small chapels, in the pilgrims we walked beside and shared meals with, and in the nuns who gave loving hugs and blessings along the path. In those seeking blessing, at the Iron Cross (Cruz de Ferro), where so many share their mourning and try to lay down their burdens, in the patience of my husband and in the stillness of my heart. The Spirit was with us as we followed a path, literally and figuratively, that so many seekers walked before us. This blanketed me with a sense of comfort. 

Did I have to go on a pilgrimage to find this awareness? Deep peace came from looking into my heart and making myself available to the Spirit. How do I allow myself to be available as a conduit of the Spirit as this journey continues?  Who and what is making the Spirit a reality for me? 

Gratitude, humility, wisdom

Our arrival into Santiago was a bit of a letdown, perhaps because it ended in a tourist hub or because it felt like another enormous cathedral in a chain of cathedrals.  Maybe because we came to understand the adage, “joy is in the journey.” While in Spain, a new grandson arrived and we lost Tom’s mom. We spent time together and with others in beautiful conversation, praying, mourning and celebrating. We had ups and downs in terrain, moods and weather.  All parts of a journey that will continue. 

A final Mass at the Pilgrim’s Office in Santiago provided one more parting gift.  As we communally shared petitions, a priest on pilgrimage, celebrating 30 years of ordination, asked for three graces as he continued his ministry journey:  gratitude, humility, wisdom.  His words came from his own grateful, humble, wise heart.  The Way has provided and continues to provide these graces. 

Gratitude was having the space to notice and appreciate the day, the taste of bread, the love and patience of my husband, a soft gravel trail and rhythm of our steps, the story of another. Gratitude for the heavy sleep that came with a tired body, for moments to mourn the ones we loved, love the ones we mourn and to celebrate and love the person in front of us. 

Humility was a close companion beginning on day one as I fell on a wet, rocky downhill, landing on my pack and one of my walking poles. I carried a bent pole the rest of my journey –a reminder of my imperfections. This is how life is. A difficult moment and we carry a little brokenness going forward. Add a couple more falls, painful feet, getting lost here and there and having days of simple sadness. I hold these realities together with the knowledge that each of us is the incarnation of the infinite love and generosity of the Creator and I remind myself of the Serbian proverb: “Be humble for you are made of earth, be noble for you are made of stardust.”

Then wisdom – how do we embody gratitude and humility in a way that leads to living with wisdom? Perhaps wisdom is simply coming to accept that I don’t know, remembering to live with curiosity, joy and patience with what is unfolding. Maybe it is embracing that “to be a saint is to be myself” as Thomas Merton, an American monk and writer, once wrote.

Perhaps the greatest wisdom gained on this pilgrimage came from taking the next step and then the next, in this eternally unfolding journey.