Finally Packed

In preparing and packing for this trip, it seems like countless texts and messages have been exchanged about equipment, particularly shoes and socks. Should I go with Keens or Merrells, Salomons or some other name brand hiking boot paired with wool socks from organically-fed sheep from the Scottish Highlands? It is a challenge to figure out how to equip oneself to hike 70 miles or so along unfamiliar terrain and not make it a comfortable vacation or a fashion show for high-priced gear from REI.

In perusing online options while reading about how this pilgrimage has existed for about 1000 years, I wondered what footwear were chosen by the earliest of travelers? Did they simply use some leather tied with some sort of twine? Did they wear sandals? What about the pilgrims who traveled in the cold and rain? I don’t know that they had the same access to raincoats from The North Face with the ventilated sleeves so that you don’t get too sweaty when it’s warm out.

I can only imagine how deeply spiritual the pilgrims of long ago were, knowing that they would be hardships, potential for robbery, no communications to home, and the ever-present risk of death in a far away land. Certainly, they took far greater risks than the ones we take in the Internet age.  We can communicate with our families from anywhere, and we can livestream our experiences for all the world to see in real-time. 



Those folks who trekked 1000 years ago had FAITH.  They had faith that God would protect them as they made their way to visit the tomb of the Apostle James; James who breathed the same air as Jesus. They had faith that their travels would be free from danger and assumed that there would be some sort of risk in their travels. They must have assumed that the risk was part of the reason that they were rewarded with indulgences when they arrived in Compostela.  Their sacrifices would be acknowledged by the Church and they would be rewarded in the afterlife. 

I don’t know what this pilgrimage will bring for me. I can’t imagine having the same faith as those pilgrims of old, to leave my family for months for an uncertain journey and a meaningful risk to my life.  Perhaps this trip will just be a good time with old friends, or perhaps I’ll get closer to God. Or maybe I’ll have a deeply spiritual experience. This trip has the added power of hiking during Holy Week and celebrating the Triduum along the Way.  We’ll see.  

I know that I’m going with men who have known me since I was 12 years old. I don’t really need to pretend and impress. We’ve been through that.  God knows high school saw us at our best and worst (puberty?) and we came out as good friends and brothers on the other end of that journey.  I’m looking forward to what the Camino will bring. 

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