Perhaps not?

For weeks I've been referring to this trip as a long walk. John consistently gives me a look that warns that I might be minimizing the experience. But it is a walk! I don't really like to hike. I never go into the white mountains or even Morse mountain. But at the airport, people see our back packs and ask where we are “hiking”.

While camping at Hermit Island, I read a book about the Camino, “Walk in a Relaxed Manner”. In a couple chapters, she writes about the hardships she and her partner endured...like cold, hunger, pain! The next morning I said to John, “You know, I'm not doing this because I want to suffer!”

It occurred to me that this might be more than just a long walk.

Two nights before we were to leave for the Camino, I woke up at 3 am and lay in bed wondering, ‘what the fuck am I doing”. When people ask me why I'm doing it, I usually come up with some reasonable response, but in the wee hours of the morning, those reasonable thoughts don't really hold up.

Am I seeking spiritual enlightenment? Sure. I'm always doing that...sorta...although, I don't think Rachel Maddow or Game of Thrones supports that goal very much.

But I think of spiritual enlightenment as about achieving BLISS. That's the imagery that comes to mind when I think about the Camino. Walking...strolling through the Spanish countryside, meeting new people, eating great food. But I think I might have also signed on for blisters, aching muscles, scrappy sleeping conditions and apparently...French fries (a popular item on the Pilgrim menu)

Well, life IS full of surprises. I'll remain cautiously optimistic..and there's always Paris.