I easily remembered this especially beautiful stretch of The Path from my 2008 pilgrimage here, and enjoyed sharing it with more than a few fellow pilgrims on this particularly glorious morning.*

“Your own special Mission — which is nothing short of the fulfillment of your innate Divinity – is neither an external location to be found nor an internal essence to be rediscovered. No, while your Purpose does indeed reside within you, it must be walked to be known, and it must be walked not to get to those living in another locale, but rather to immerse yourself in the lives of those already residing where you already are. As such, rediscovering your vocation does not mean scrambling toward some prize just beyond the horizon, nor does it mean passively accepting ‘The treasure of True Self’ you already possess. No, your vocation is honoring the voice within calling you to be the courageously caring person you were born to be; to embrace & embody & fulfill the Great Selfhood we have all been given at birth by the Divine Itself.” ~ inspired by Parker Palmer

*I had developed a Purpose-full strategy for interacting with my fellow pilgrims by this time. Not wanting to arrogantly impeded upon their own equally worthy quests by loudly or directly announcing my mission or its merits, I would simply saunter past a fellow traveler (or group thereof), greet them warmly, slow down slightly ahead of him or her (or them) – far enough to not be intrusive and yet also close enough to allow them to read the message printed on the back of my Peace Smock. More often than not no one said a word and I smoothly flowed on thereafter, and yet sometimes someone would ask about my uniform, and a Meaning-full conversation would ensue …

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