Day 105o: Hobbling into HOME … (July 28, 2019)
Walking “Suseia-style”* proves to be a small bit of a challenge, to be sure (there were far fewer waymarkers posted for those walking The Way “backwards”), and yet I continually rediscover the Path I am to be taking nonetheless, and steadily made my way onward along The Way – all the way to the lovely village of San Martino and its well-reported “commune” of Igrexa de San Martiño de Ozón** – a truly gorgeous ancient monastery that had been converted into a donativo hostel. I entered the shimmering courtyard of the same and was immediately met by owner Michele, who – after listening to an abbreviated version of my Walk — just as immediately took me in, gave me a huge hug, showed me around the hostel’s monastic grounds, and told me to relax and make myself at HOME …
“Offering sanctuary to another is in truth a revolutionary act, for it is a bold expression of limitless Love in a world still built on fear and scorn and hatred. Indeed, inviting another to enter and reside in your home – for however long – is a deeply intimate recognition of the other’s innate & abject worth. While the average man is busy protecting his abode, the man who opens his doors to any & all in need is just as industriously building a Community. The offer of sanctuary to any traveler or stranger is a bold uttering of ‘we’ in a time riddled with ‘I’. It is a return to days of greater belonging — the building block of peace.” ~ inspired by Diane Kalen-Sukra
*A standard greeting on the Camino for those walking towards Santiago &/or Finisterre was “Ultreia” – a word that essentially means “to the horizon (and beyond).” For those making their pilgrimage’s return trip (or for those, like myself, who happened to be purposefully walking away from Santiago &/or Finisterre) “Suseia” was the offered exclamation – a word that meant “to the heavens” (and I guess “beyond” just as well).
** Michele c/o
Igrexa de San Martiño de Ozón
Lugar Vilar Sobremonte 6
15125 San Martiño
A Coruña, Spain
(034) 981750707
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