Aire sur l’Adour was easy enough to access, and yet it was very late in the afternoon when I arrived, and I was literally at my wits end (with fatigue and primal fear being an especially difficult team to transcend). Fortunately a sweet resident noted my obvious state of more-than-mild distress and helped to orient […]
Walking in the direction of the (ultimately nonexistent) donativo hostel mentioned by the callously dismissive Maison des Pelerins manager, I did come across the offices of the local Catholic services. Frustratingly, they were already closed for the night, and things were really starting to look pretty grim as the day steadily progressed into early evening […]
The warm-hearted Polo ended up driving right back up the first hill I had climbed – right past Allesandro’s not-so-welcoming hostel, and right to the front stairwell of the Chapelle des Ursulines. He told me he couldn’t guarantee my entrance thereto, and that I was on my own from there, and yet our parting of […]
And so it was that I came to spend the night in the most amazing place surrounded by the most amazing people – all of whom proved to be (in one way or another) deeply moved by my Mission and its meanderings. Even Didier (pictured in the forefront of this post’s final attached image) was […]
I woke from a deep (though also a bit sweaty) sleep and enjoyed a relaxing breakfast alone (with the rest of my fellow pilgrims having already eaten quickly in order to start their walking early). Stephane, with whom I had shared a delightful conversation the previous evening, then walked over to me before himself heading […]
“There are all different kinds of voices calling us to all different kinds of work. The challenge is to find out which of them are reflecting the Voice of God rather than the whisperings of society, say, or the inner ego, or our self-interest. The kind of work God ever calls us to is the […]
I didn’t take long for me to exit yesterday’s large metropolis (it turns out that last night’s hostel-cathedral was located on the upper outskirts of town), and it didn’t take much longer still for me to be immersed in Nature once more – blessed by paths smooth through forests verdant, and even graced with a […]
Now THIS is my kind of Path … 🙂 “In seeking after what the Soul desires we become pilgrims; travelers with no Home but the path the Soul would have us follow.” ~ via Michael Meade
“This Road leads ever-onward, and won’t ever lead you astray. It won’t always be easy to follow , of course, and at times it will appear to be too jagged or too narrow for your feet to tread. And yet if you never cease in following it anyway, you will invariably transcend every challenge faced.” […]
“When you set forth on a pilgrimage it will always take you to secluded places – perhaps into deep forests, or alongside lakes and rivers; perhaps to the ocean shores or across desert dunes; perhaps to the heart of the jungle or up to the summits of the highest cliffs; perhaps into monasteries and their […]
I was flowing smoothly through the day – covering large swathes of ground with seemingly no effort at all, when I came across a cute little pilgrims’ rest-stop being in-JOYed by Andre, Marie Claude, Jean, and Veronique (four of my compatriots from last night’s Aire sur Adour hostel). I chat amiably with them for a […]
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