As I walked intentionally toward Santiago
unknowingly, I moved away from life
as I had lived it.
As I climbed mountains,
I descended
towards my vulnerabilities.
As my suffering body limped painfully along the path,
my curious imagination
grew more flexible.
As I drank liters of water to hydrate my body each day,
my spirit sought thirstily
for a seemingly elusive oasis.
As I faithfully recorded my thoughts and experiences,
invisible understandings of Reality
were being erased.
Orientation towards Compostela was unwavering.
Whenever there was a choice of which way to go,
lovingly placed yellow arrows pointed towards my pilgrimage goal.
I followed them
all the way
to the Cathedral of St. James.
Even now, I remember with relief and gratitude the joy of arriving.
“I made it!
Where am I?” I asked as I prayed in the sanctuary.
I still cannot find the place
on the map
entitled, My Former Life!
Please do not copy any part of this poem without written permission.
Pilgrim arriving in Santiago de Compostela, Spain Photo credit: ©Timothy Charles Geoffrion
“… this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:13b-14 (NRSV)
Mini-pilgrimage
Remember in God’s presence
a time when you thought you knew “where you were going,”
but you ended up somewhere else.
Ask to be given more understanding.
When it comes,
give thanks.