The day is what you make of it. If you want to walk alone, you most certainly can. I've had days where the only people (and pilgrims) I see are in the towns for rests. Sometimes I have to sit on the path for a few minutes. To let the pilgrim ahead of me get out of sight in order to do it, but if that's what I want, then that's what I do. But if you want to walk with people, you can do that too. I've also had days where I felt I was walking in a zombie horde. The fact is that in the Medieval times, the path supported twice as many pilgrims as there are now, and if you want a truly solitary walk, then you can do the Appalachian Trail or the Camino Norte.
I've been thinking about this, and I think part of the spiritual nature of this pilgrimage is exploring your connection with other pilgrims, past, present, and future. You really can't do this walk without dealing with others, and the nature of the walk is such that not only do you have constant reminders of the thousands that came before you, but you also can form intense bonds within a half hour of walking together. It probably has to do with the fact that you are sharing a unique experience, and going through intense physical pain together, but also the act of walking for a long time kind of puts you in almost a trance. And if you do that walking next to someone, people tend to open up more than they would with someone they just met normally. Some pilgrims get over-excited about this, in my opinion, and get all new agey and over mystical. For example, there's a pilgrim, David, who now lives permanently outside a farmers shed and offers orange juice to passing pilgrims. He's been in a years long dispute with the farmer over his right to live there. Other pilgrims were exalting him and his 'cause', talking about how he epitomizes the 'spirit of the Way'. After a while of this, I couldn't take it anymore, and said "doesn't anyone feel bad for the farmer who can't get rid of the smelly pilgrim blocking his use of his shed? Besides, the spirit of the way is not free sharing for all...it's about getting foreigners to come to your country and spend some sorely needed money in these towns that would otherwise die and lose their children to the cities and to other countries where they can find work. And as for the free juice, tell me how much 'donativo' you left, because I left him 5 euro for my 50 cent juice". Sheesh! Hipsters, indeed!
I did see a 'pilgrim tour' and I thought it was great! A bus unloaded a pile of old people into the village I was in and I followed them (discretely) to see what they were doing. They were all dressed up in pilgrims clothes, the boots, the hiker shorts, the walking sticks. But all they did was get off the bus, have a pilgrims menu in a cafe, walk around the cobblestone streets, then get back on the bus. I thought it was fantastic that for those who either physically can't or don't have time or don't want the full commitment got a chance to dress up and eat like a pilgrim. Good for them....and good for the dying villages. Of course, eating is only part of the experience, but whatever. They got a piece and they had fun. I don't begrudge them at all. As a matter of fact, their spent money is part of what will keep the Camino alive for future generations, so bring em on! They certainly aren't clogging up the trails!
Love you!
Sent from my iPhone
No comments:
Post a Comment