Felt somehow “called” to leave my comfy donativo hostel in Bercianos to provide assistance here in Burgo de Ranero. Of course, I arrive and there is no assistance needed — AND there is no food provided to pilgrims at the hostel — AND the next donativo is many many many miles away.

The gracious manager allowed me to stay the night, but I was still hungry and a slipped a bit into the “woe is me” of the ego.

After speaking with a fellow pilgrim from Germany about the Camino in general, some “switch” inside me flipped, and I was flooded with such an intense wave of gratitude. I KNEW that I didn’t need to eat anything to tonight. I KNEW that I was somehow being cared for (while being instructed, of course). And I KNEW that even if no food ever came, it was an honor to do all I could to serve Humanity & the Universe before I died.

Well, no sooner did I choose to believe that (every belief is a choice. I was fortunate in this case that I had already experienced the validity of these Truths for several years prior to this particular “dilemma”) than my hunger completely disappeared (a common phenomenon after choosing to enter a selfless state of Being).

Even more amazing, while I was sitting there in Bliss, my German friend sauntered over to me and let me know that the manager had allowed us to make dinner with all the food that yesterday’s pilgrims had left in the fridge!  So Andrew (my German friend) and I cooked up a fantastic dinner and ate it laughingly on the front porch while watching a light rain shower the town … Thank Yooooouuuuuuuuuuuu!!!

“The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same.

Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.”

~ Don Williams, Jr.

Filed under: Walking The Way (Camino de Santiago - 2008) by Scaughdt