For those who will never make it to Le Puy, much less walk the Camino through southern France, this is how it looks for every pilgrim setting forth from that phenomenal place. After each morning’s pilgrims mass is concluded and the pilgrims present have been blessed, a metal grate in the very middle of the floor opens up to reveal a broad staircase leading straight down — directly out of the church and directly onto The Way… :O

“The meaningful life must ever be lived as a pilgrim, never as a mere tourist. For the latter seeks company and excitement and fun, and thus is ever disappointed, while the former seeks to immerse himself in all nearby, and as such is never lonely and ever at peace. The tourist takes her culture with her as she journeys, and thus looks past the culture through which she passes, while the pilgrim chooses to leave her culture — and indeed her adopted identity — behind, and as such becomes deeply intertwined with every being she meets. The tourist walks to see and know — and thus ultimately learns nothing, while the pilgrim walks to feel and honor and serve — and thereby comes to fully comprehend it all. “ ~ via Khalil Gibran & J. R. Rim

Filed under: Peace Pilgrimage #02: Walking HOME (2019) by Scaughdt