It goes almost without saying (certainly for those of you who have been following along so far) that I ended up crossing the country of Spain at a fluidly rapid pace – so rapid, in fact, that I ended up arriving in Santiago many days ahead of most of those I had previously met along The Way. This is why it was no real surprise that I saw almost no familiar faces in Santiago itself, and also why I had seen so few previously well-met friends while walking to Finisterre as well. That said, I was now in effect walking in the opposite direction – towards those further back who were still making their way to the coast. And so it should have come as no surprise to me that I would see so many re-found faces on this day, and yet surprised I was when gentle Carlos (who I had sat next to at breakfast way back in Roncevalles almost a full month previous) approached me from the horizon and greeted me like the long-found Friends proved to be …

“When we fully understand the brevity of life, its fleeting joys and unavoidable pains; when we accept the facts that all men and women are approaching a mutually inevitable doom: the consciousness of the same cannot help but make us more kindly towards and considerate of one another. So remember the same today & every day, and allow this feeling to wash our your thoughts and inspire you to use your very best efforts to warmly greet & selflessly care for all fellow travelers on the road; to make their path a bit brighter and their way a bit easier as you journey on respectively. This reminder will bring a closer kinship to all well-met along your Way, a better understanding of their searches and trials, and a thereby a deeper compassion for them – fellow wayfarers with whom you share a planet and a summons; who indeed live a common life and die a common death to your own.” ~ inspired by Clarence Darrow

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