Music of the soul

Looking back at Conques, one of the jewels of the Le Puy Chemin

"I need simply and only to wait upon God without expectation, 

and God, all longing, resting in me, 

will breathe in me the music of my soul."

~Edwina Gately 

Quote sent to me by a friend just before my departure for Cluny, 2012.

Sacred Ground

On my very first day of walking, on the plateau above Le-Puy-en-Velay

before reaching Saint Christophe sur Dolaison

"Standing on Holy Ground 

– all is Sacred and all is gift"

I was nervous on that very first climb out of Le Puy
as I had heard it was steep, and wasn't sure if my fitness would be found wanting.

I was so pleased to find all my pre-Chemin walks meant it proved to be not too daunting.

I soon found myself relaxing into the landscape of the plateau above Le Puy

filled with an immense happiness to be there

and hoping that weeks of walking in the outdoors lay ahead.

I was filled with reverence and joy.

Life just seemed like pure gift in those moments.

On an unknown road

 Somewhere after Navarrenx, in the Basque country, nearing the Pyrenees

"I’d rather be stumbling along an unknown road

than safely cooped up in even the nicest cul-de-sac"

~Paul

on People for Others blog

I loved walking down this wet path, under the shelter of trees dripping with the rain. It was refreshing and enlivening. And flat and easy- which was not to be the case on the chemin later in the day!

Small Beauty

"Look closely. The beautiful may be small."   

 ~ Immanuel Kant

A black slug on the Napoleon Route across the Pyrenees.

They seemed to live in thick black leaf detritus -under trees near the top of the pass-

that saturated my socks in black muck that took forever to rinse out!!

For Kay and Craig

'climb' in the Auvergne region

on the first day out of Le-Puy-en-Velay

(This post is especially for Kay and Craig 

who are both about to start walking from Le-Puy-en-Velay in the coming week.)

"Watch your way then, as a cautious traveler

and don't be gazing at that mountain

or river in the distance

and saying, "How shall I ever get over them?"

but keep to the present little inch that is before you

and accomplish that

in the little moment that belongs to it.

The mountain and the river can only be passed

in the same way

and when you come to them

you will come to the light and strength

that belong to them."

~Kelty

Found on the sidebar of Mary Pott's blog 'Landing on my Feet'

in honour of her daughter who died of cancer aged 18  

Glorious Dawn

  the landscape just past Astorga, early one morning following a thunderstorm

“Let the splendour of your glory dawn in our hearts.”

~Liturgy of the Hours 

 Quote from Picturing God Blog

Everyday miracles

A few of the many wildflowers seen beside the path en route for Rabanal del Camino

“Take time to celebrate the quiet miracles that seek no attention.”

~John O’Donohue

h/t: quote seen on the Picturing God blog.

Courage

 Spring appearing on the descent from the Aubrac Plateau

"Courage doesn't always roar. 

Sometimes courage is the quiet voice 

at the end of the day saying, 

"I will try again tomorrow." 

~Mary Anne Radmacher

Occasionally there were 'hard days' on the Camino.

One such day was the first day of crossing the Aubrac Plateau when I got so wet and cold. 
It wasn't the wet and cold that was so hard, it was the fact I was walking alone in those conditions, 
and knew there was a chance of becoming hypothermic, alone. 

So the next morning, I had to 'make myself' walk on.... 
I had to take my own courage by the scruff of the neck 
and walk on for the second day of the Aubrac crossing. 

And at the end of the day as I descended from the Plateau to a lower altitude,

even though I felt exhausted

there was the joy of seeing the world around me

change into early spring...

Looking

trees with spring leaves, seen when approaching Figeac

"I look; morning to night I am never done with looking.

Looking I mean not just standing around, but standing around

     as though with your arms open.

And thinking: maybe something will come, some

    shining coil of wind,

    or a few leaves from any old tree-

        they are all in this too."

~Mary Oliver

in the poem 'Where Does the Temple Begin, Where Does It End?'

One of the lasting legacies of the Camino for me has been this looking:-

 looking and noticing details in the world outdoors around me.

Flowers of the Camino

 

Flowers seen beside the path nearing San Martin del Camino, 

after a long hot day's walk, mostly near highway, out of Leon.

“There are always flowers for those who want to see them.”

 

—Henri Matisse

 Quote found on 'Picturing God' website

On my last night in Santiago I had a very special conversation 

with a Frenchman I had met a few times along the Camino.

He had always struck me as a prayerful, reflective man, full of wisdom,

who thought a lot about others. 

(I was surprised though to find him on the altar of the Cathedral in Santiago as a deacon!)

In our last conversation

he told me that I was 'une fleur du camino'

-a flower of the Camino. 

But he also gently said that a flower sometimes has to die to make a seed.

His words and his love have always remained within me.

A Long Walk

 Countryside near Saugues on the Le Puy route

"What on earth has happened to me 
in these 5 years since my first Camino? 

Then I simply decided to go for a long walk 

but of course I discovered as we all do 
that as well as the physical act of walking 

which is deeply meditative, 

the simplicity of the way of life, 

the friendship of strangers 

and the beauty of the countryside 

are actually a powerful spiritual brew."

~Johnnie Walker

Rain on a spiderweb

seen soon after leaving Domaine des Mathieux, the day after heavy rain had fallen

 

"I am sure it is a great mistake always to know

enough to go in when it rains.  

One may keep snug and dry by such knowledge, 

but one misses a world of loveliness."

~Adeline Knapp 

Early Morning

In the countryside after Astorga- walking early- 
with the remnants of a thunderstorm still in the air

"I'll tell you how the sun rose a ribbon at a time."

~Emily Dickinson 

On warmer days in France and Spain 

I always preferred to start walking in the morning cool.

To walk as the world awoke to a new day 

was always a time of real joy for me

deep quiet joy.

And this particular morning I walked with my Quebec friends.

It had been an unbearably hot night,

until in the early hours, a loud thunderstorm began. 

We were glad to escape early, 

though nervous lest the storm return while we were in the open.

We were all excited, after so many days of 'flat' walking

to be heading for the mountains again, 

towards Rabanal del Camino... Foncebadon..... Cruz de Ferro...

places of mysterious names, 

all in the higher land that we couldn't wait to climb.

Changing Seasons

Leaving Montbonnet on Day 2 of the Chemin, with mid-April snow on the ground

"Each moment of the year has its own beauty

....a picture which was never before

and shall never be seen again."

~Emerson

Another h/t to George for the quote.

One of the greatest joys I found in the whole walk from Le Puy to Santiago

was the way I passed through the changing seasons as I walked. 

These first few days out of Le-Puy-en-Velay, mid-April

were bitterly cold at times

and twice, there was even snow- a novelty for a Kiwi lowland North Islander!

On this beautiful path....

 en route between Cirauqui and Estella

"The mind can go in a thousand directions, 

but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. 

With each step, the wind blows. 

With each step, a flower blooms."

 ~Thich Nhat Hanh

I loved the beauty in these early days walking in Spain,

with fields so unexpectedly green and 'spring-like'

and medieval villages and bridges

that reminded you that you walked in historic steps.

Medieval pilgrims, ancient Romans and even those from times lost in pre-history

have also walked here.

Mindful- by Mary Oliver

The first day on the Meseta- lush and green and beautiful

not at all what I had been expecting!

'Oh, good scholar,
I say to myself,
how can you help

but grow wise
with such teachings
as these -
the untrimmable light

of the world,
the ocean’s shine,
the prayers that are made
out of grass?'

~from 'Mindful'

by Mary Oliver 

Be Mindful

two French men walking between Aroue and Ostabat, 

getting closer to the Pyrenees 

 

"Be mindful of the sound of your feet upon the road,

Be mindful of the warmth of the sun,

Be mindful of the smell of the earth after the rain,

Keep in mind the wonder of it all.

There’s a dance our bodies long to dance,

There’s a song our voices long to sing,

There’s a dream our planet’s dreaming of,

Sing and dance her dream upon the earth."

~from the song 'Be Mindful'

by Chris Skinner SM

Rainbow at Orisson

part way up the pass over the Pyrenees

a magnificent rainbow draped the evening skies

“What you are in love with,

what seizes your imagination

will affect everything. 

It will decide what will get you out of bed in the mornings, 

what you will do with your evenings, 

how you spend your weekends, 

what you read, who you know, 

what breaks your heart, 

and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. 

Fall in love, stay in love, 

and it will decide everything.”

~Pedro Arrupe S.J. 

 

The evening spent at Orisson, part-way up the Napoleon Route over the Pyrenees,
was one of the most precious times on the whole Chemin for me.
The view was magnificent, out across the 'layers' of hills and mountains.
Then a rainbow came, and was draped right across the sky and the mountains.
(This photo of just a portion of it gives merely a hint of the glory.)

These outdoor glories, the small ones and the large ones,
are treasures in my heart
and noticing them
has seeped within
as a reason for my being.

Beauty

The village of Hontanas, 

on the Meseta, mid-June 2008

"Beauty consoled and strengthened me

during the countless times my legs and feet hurt from walking

and my shoulders pained from carrying my backpack.....

...... The natural splendor around me gave me hope

when my hungry soul longed for a touch of enthusiasm.

Always the many forms of beauty on the Camino

reached out to me,

asking nothing more than that I embrace their gifts."

~Joyce Rupp

in 'Walk in a Relaxed Manner: 

Life Lessons from the Camino'

Awe and Wonder

The lushness of spring, in the countryside after Lauzerte

"The elemental spirituality is awe and wonder and delight before the creation. 

The mountains, the birds, the flowers, the children

reach out and touch us with wonder and with joy.

We sense a wonderful Creator.

We respond with thankfulness,

sometimes reverence,

engaging with the holy."

~From "We Well People" 

a book about Celtic Spirituality

by  a New Zealand author, John Hunt