Today has probably been one of the worst within the journey of the Camino. It began with poor weather - not unlike walking back home in Scotland with driving rain and wind. The routes across country turned into a quagmire and it was a good ten miles walking before we encountered any sign of civilisation. The guide book which I am following wanted to celebrate the natural tracks and the solitude - my feet wanted anything but the next sharp rocks jabbing upward into the already forming blisters underneath!!
When finally we completed our 17 miles or so I felt as if all my feet had turned into one large blister! I hobbled into the Albergue and almost screamed when I finally dared to remove the socks. So, today was something down to good old fashioned sticking at it despite the pain. I have to admit there were moments where I had those obvious thoughts - what on earth Scott do you think you are doing? Surely, you could have looked into spirituality in the comfort of some retreat centre somewhere?
Yet, the other day in one of the Albergues there was a T-shirt which displayed some foot souls blistered and taped together alongside the words: "No pain! No glory!" It was the most tempting piece of marketing that I have seen so far.
This journey demands the very all of our being and there are clear times where we have to accept the body´s prompting. One of our team, Naz, had to leave the other day as his time was running out and he was having tremendous pain from blisters within his feet which he picked up in the first day - how he managed to walk so far with the pain reveals his strength of character. We all miss him dearly, yet he accepted his body´s prompting and is now resting in the beautiful city of Barcelona.
There are so many people of different ages on this walk and all with there various deep needs of soul. The journey has become so much to them that it has become almost something which could become an obsession. There is a real wisdom here, that needs to be considered - sometimes human obsession to achieve blinds us to the immediate needs of our own bodies and the world around us. I am a couple of days behind schedule due to baggage delays and having to rest somewhat in Burgos - it will mean a day travelling ahead and missing some distance to catch up, but I am not seeing this as a kind of failure. Instead I feel that listening to my body and seeking to respond to its needs is a deeper lesson for me.
The picture included is of the journey through the Pyrenees!
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