Day 1 - St. Jean Pied de Port to Orrison - April 28

Come now, you who say,
“Today or tomorrow we shall go into such and such a town,
spend a year there doing business, and make a profit”–
you have no idea what your life will be like tomorrow.
You are a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears.
Instead you should say,
“If the Lord wills it, we shall live to do this or that.” James 4:13-17

 If the Lord wills it is often in piety referred to as the “conditio Jacobaea,” the condition James says we should employ to qualify all our plans.

James,  the patron saint of all pilgrims, tells us that we should always use the expression ‘if the Lord wills it’ when we talk about our plans. Otherwise we are nothing but arrogant fools. So as we begin our time on the Camino de Santiago hoping to walk the entire way, we say “Si Dios quiere.”

Prayer for Help from the Angels (Based on Daniel 10)

"In the name of Jesus, we plead the Blood of Jesus upon ourselves, our loved ones and those for whom we are praying. In the name of Jesus, we ask You, Lord, to dispatch Your holy angels to fight with us and for us against the enemy. Just as you sent help to the prophet Daniel, send us angelic warriors to occupy the enemy and enable the answers to our prayers to come through.

We pray especially against any obstacles placed by the enemy to keep our prayers from being answered. Let Your holy angels wield their swords to penetrate the darkness and break through any bondage or obstacles to our prayer.

We pray confidently that having sent Your holy angels to the aid of Daniel, You will send them to help us as we call upon them now. We make this prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen." 
(Prayer composed by Al Mansfield)


It was a misty morning as we began. Young women from Venezuela asked me to take a pic of them on the bridge leaving St. Jean Pied de Port and they reciprocated for us. Sweet. I did not think we would get this photo together. 

The rain began in earnest and I did not take many photos of the first day. We stopped to get out our umbrellas. We started out with our pack covers.

You can see fellow Pilgrims in front of us in the picture above. The first of many sheep we would see along the way.

 Most of the day looked liked this ...

Stoney's umbrella will attach to his pack strap and waist belt so it can be used hands-free but since he's an "in control" type person, he prefers to carry it.

We met a nice group of guys from Ireland who were moving fast. We knew we would never see them again. It was really raining at this point and we stopped for about about 10 minutes to chat under the tree.

Boy, this was a welcome sight! Arrival at Orrison Albergue - our first 5 miles on the Camino completed. Sure happy we could reserve a room here to rest before the butt buster tomorrow. 

It was very crowded and chaotic here with people coming in out of the rain to eat and rest. We found a seat in the corner at the end of the room. This is an American woman who has lived in Costa Rica for 30 years. Her maiden name is Money and she is walking the Camino with two sisters; they call themselves 'The Money Girls.' A young man from Korea joined our table to have a bowl of soup before moving on. Most people walked to Roncesvalles on this first day because overnight space is very limited. I was so grateful we could spend the night here.

We were offered a private room with no heat and we took it. It worked out fine. With the extra blankets and our sleeping bags, we stayed warm.  Getting out from underneath the covers the next morning was another story. 

We were introduced to timed showers here.  We were given a coin to insert and I think we had 3-5 minutes of water.  However, after just a minute, the water stopped. I was a bit irritated; I knew I had not used 3-5 min. worth of water at that point.  I punched the water handle and it restarted. I guess it was timed to shut off after each minute or so and I eventually finished my shower. 

We slept well and we were ready for the climb to proceed up the Pyrenees. This was our fist view on the morning of Day 2. We could see something and it was not shrouded in fog or low clouds. 

Arrival in St. Jean Pied de Port - April 27, Sunday

At the Pau train station I struck up a conversation with this group and they were headed to the Camino too.  We had a 90 minute van ride together and I'll let the video take it from here:

It was a delightful ride with this group. Since they were starting at Roncesvalles 15 miles further up the Camino, we didn't expect to see them again. We said good bye and "Buen Camino!" -- the first of many that would come out of our mouths on this journey.

 

"Arrival -- This is a great moment, when you see, however distant, the goal of your wandering. The thing which has been living in your imagination suddenly becomes a part of the tangible world." ~ Freya Stark

Five days, two airplanes (one to Brussels/one to Biarritz), one rental car (Brussels to Chievres to Charleois), one taxi to Bayonne train station,  two trains (first to Lourdes and then to Pau) and one van (to St. Jean Pied de Port).  We are now officially on foot (a pied). 

Looking back at the arch we walked under as we entered St. Jean Pied de Port

 We came with Pilgrim Passports from American Pilgrims on the Camino but decided to wait in line at the Pilgrim Office (it was closed for lunch) and obtain the Carnet De Pelerin De Saint-Jacques "Credencial del Peregrino".  The reason, it is larger and there are more spaces for the stamps we would obtain along The Way. Since we will walk slower and spend more time on the Camino we thought we might need more spaces for the stamps.

Caroline issues our passports and gives us some good information.

We chose a shell from the basket which we will tie onto our backpacks to denote that we are Pilgrims. I chose a chipped shell - it seemed to call my name when I looked into the basket. I picked it up and then put it down and looked at many others but went back to it.  I'm a little rough around the edges too !

We have met pilgrims from many places already - Holland, Belgium, Brazil, Ireland, South Africa, Canada, Spain (on bicycles they will do 500 miles in 12 days), Australia, France. All are eager to begin the Camino. We are feeling pampered with a private room and bath at Gite Azkorria just a few houses up the street from the Pilgrim Office. 

This afternoon we walked around the town. It's a beautiful place. 

We climbed too many steps on the old wall to count

Still headed up

I stopped for a photo break and to catch my breath

Stoney has completed the steps and now just a short hill awaits ...

The climb warmed him up and he removed his jacket.  Good practice for the Pyrenees.

Bought Basque cheese and chorizo for our first lunch tomorrow on the Camino. On the way out in the morning, we will pick up a fresh baguette from the bakery. 

We will probably begin around 9 am after breakfast. We have a reservation at Albergue Orrison. Just being a 5 mile day, it will be difficult for Stoney. He would rather finish the first day in Roncesvalles - a 15 mile first day. Maybe he will see the wisdom in a shorter first day after arrival.

"Lord, grant that I may always allow myself to be guided by you,
always follow your plans, and accomplish your holy will.
Grant that in all things, great and small, today and all the days of my life,
I may do whatever you may require of me.
Help me to respond to the slightest prompting of your grace,
so that I may be a trustworthy instrument of your honor.
May your will be done in time and eternity--
by me, in me and through me.  Amen." ~ Saint Teresa of Avila

Lourdes, France - April 26

We drove a rental car from Chievres to Charleois, Belgium (about 44 min) and got on a plane to Biarritz, France. Took a taxi to Bayonne train station (15 min ride) and 20 min later boarded train to Lourdes (2 hr. very peaceful ride). He looks tired but we are doing well and have made the time change. 

Yes, that is snow but we won't be walking in those mountains. As we got closer to Lourdes, this was the view from the train. Beautiful.

He really was in a good mood -- but it doesn't show here.  He does not like posing for pics. We walked from the Lourdes train station to our hotel. 

Just a 10 min. walk but we made it into about 30 minutes because we weren't good with the directions. It is hilly here and we actually passed by it and did not see the sign!  We checked in and spent the remainder of the day at the shrine. We ended up taking an indirect route and this was our view as we approached.

It touched my heart to see all the ill/infirm who had come to Lourdes. There were so very many more than this picture captures. While waiting on the train from Lourdes to Pau, we spoke with a young woman from Holland who volunteers with her church every year for a couple of weeks to assist those who come to Lourdes. What a beautiful ministry.

 

 It's a big place.

April 24 and April 25

We took a drive to Charleois airport and left about 9 AM on Thursday to make sure we could get there. We will leave in the dark about 4:30 AM on Saturday. Checked out where to return the rental car and talked with Ryanair rep who told us we need to be there 2 hours before flight; the flight is at 7:15 AM. Now, if we just don't bobble the directions in the dark. 

On the return we stopped to take a pic of the house we rented in Jurbise from 1981 to 1985. That's it with the silver car in the drive. It was a perfect little house for our family with a big back yard for the boys to play in.

 Nick wondered if our neighbors still lived on either side. Josianne, Ernst and their son, Jean Louis (who was in college at that time) lived to our right. We thought the parents might be dead and the son would live there. They never used the front door, so we walked around back. Josianne, 86 yrs. young was working in the vegetable garden. Nick called out "hello."  We approached and in French I introduced myself.  She remembered us. 

Her husband died four years ago. Her son, Jean Louis, 54 yrs. now, is a veterinarian married to a doctor. They live several houses down on the same street.  She took us over to the house on the other side and Michelle, Stoney's age, was working in her garden. Henri, her husband, was at work. Our boys played with their son, Denis, and daughter, Celine. She invited us in and offered us a glass of wine.

 We opted for a glass of apple juice and had a toast. Of course, they were surprised to see us after 34 years. We have wonderful memories of our years in Belgium. On the way back to Chievres, we stopped at a boulangerie and bought croissants. 

Our son returned from Germany on Thursday and he surprised us by coming  to our room about 1 pm. We were not expecting him until late evening. 

Of course, it was wonderful to see him and spend time with him. We had a delicious dinner on the Place de Mons and the evening was perfect to dine outside. 

Our earlier bed time routine and earlier wake ups several days before leaving really worked to alleviate jet lag. We have had 2 nights of good sleep and are acclimated to European time. 

April 25 -- Zach took us to AFN Benelux for a tour of his work place. He was trained as a combat camera/combat videographer and here he does radio work and tv spots and whatever else needs to be done. He has had to learn a lot as he goes along and he's still learning. It can be stressful but he enjoys living in Europe. Tomorrow he has an event to cover on post. So we had lunch and dinner with him today and said our good-byes. We are very proud of him and grateful for those he serves with who help him as he learns the ropes in radio and tv. 

Au revoir, Belgium. On to France to visit Lourdes...

Random Thoughts - April 23

Nick's pack went in the trunk and mine in the backseat. 

Random thoughts on April 23 while Stoney naps (written at 4 pm Belgian time/8 am Georgia time):

At Atlanta airport waiting to board the train to get to our gate, we saw a couple a little younger than us wearing backpacks. The man had the same pack as me except one size larger. They are headed to the Camino too! Since we won't begin until April 28, we probably won't catch up to them. They were flying to Madrid and we parted ways with a 'Buen Camino!'

About 10 days before our departure date, I needed a new watch battery and went to Walmart. The jewelry counter clerk asked me to wait because she was helping another customer. A woman with a full cart came from the other side of the counter and the clerk began to check her out. I waited about 20 min., looked around a little and decided to come back another day. It is a good thing I was not waited on because I could have been hit by a car driven by a woman who apparently had a seizure as she attempted to park her car. She ran into six cars before she finally came to a stop but only after going airborne over a berm planted with bushes and trees. She sideswiped the entire right side of my car. Cars can be repaired and the woman was not seriously injured. No pedestrians were involved.

Since the repair of our car wasn't finished by departure day, we drove the rental car to the airport and turned it in. Insurance paid for the rental car and we didn't have to pay for a taxi.
Days before our flight there were lots of available seats for stand by. Yesterday we were #9 & 10 on the stand by list with I think 3 after us; there were 15 available seats. All listed stand by got a seat and there were only 2 empty seats when the plane departed the gate. I had a middle seat with Stoney to my left and a young man to my right (also flying standby). A few minutes before we pulled back from the gate a flight attendant asked the young man to move back one row. A woman with an infant sat down next to me. You can imagine my initial thoughts about the next 8.5 hours on the plane. The flight attendant said he would bring a bassinet after dinner to attach to the bulk head.

I'd never seen one but when I looked at what I thought could be attachment points it did not look good for me. The little boy was darling and VERY good-natured. Most babies cry on take off but she breast fed him and he was happy (no ear pressure pain for him). I asked his age - 4 months. I think he was small for his age. She had come last week from Belgium to attend a friend's wedding. I asked if he was her first child. She had fraternal twins and another girl at home. So this little guy was her fourth.

It was difficult for her to eat dinner holding him. When I had finished, I asked if I could hold him so she could eat. She immediately handed him over with no objections from the little guy. What a treat for me. He was a real babbler and we had quite a conversation. When she finished dinner, I gave him back. She said he was ready to sleep. She stood up with him in her arms, then she bent over at the waist almost 90 degrees, placed him on her back (stomach side down) and he did not move while she removed a shawl part of her dress, wrapped it around him to make a sling. She stood up and pulled his legs out to straddle her. She stood and sort of rocked back and forth about 10 min. While she periodically patted his bottom and he fell fast asleep. She bent over, removed the sling and took him in her arms. He remained asleep.
When the bassinet arrived, it stretched in front of me and the middle support bracket went between my knees. My first thought - for the next 5 hours I can't get up to use the bathroom. The attendant said I could trade seats with the mother but that meant Stoney would be seated next to her. I didn't think he'd like that. 

A woman with a vacant seat on the side aisle said I could take that seat so I moved. The baby slept almost until landing. The mother wrapped herself in the shawl covering her head and slept too. It was a quiet night except for the noise of the jet engines. I watched the movie, Philomena. 
The woman I sat next to was from California. She was traveling to Rome for the canonization of the two Popes on April 27th. I enjoyed her company.

We waited in line about an hour on arrival in Brussels to get our passports stamped.
After getting the rental car (much smaller than we requested), we made our way out of Brussels heading South. An open bed semi was in front of us two lanes to the right. A steel beam came loose and I watched in horror as it fell from the truck. I said "oh my God!" My only thought was that it would come through the window of the tiny Fiat 500 and we would die on the spot. Nick swerved one lane to the left, I heard a horn honk from in back of us and we continued on. The truck driver was oblivious to what had happened and continued. I kept thinking about the cars coming after us and whether they would see the steel girder in time to move.

We can't see our son today because he had training and traveled 3 hours to Germany.
We went to bed for the night at 7 pm Belgium time and we slept through the night. 

Departure, Growth and Loss of Security - April 22

The Human Garden --

We are put here for a little space
that we may learn how to bear
the beams of love. – William Blake

 






"How I love people. I love how we root and bloom, how we twine around each other and reach for the light, how as far as we grow in the dark of the earth is as far as we stand in the world. How being human, we are always charged with the vibrancy of a larger presence. How the complexity of our humanity mirrors this larger presence. In truth, we mirror everything living as we climb and stumble our way up the mountain to the cliff of yes. I recognize each person I come across because I am each on any given day. What matters is whether I shun those who bear my flaws or help them up; whether I turn away when this larger presence seems too strong or keep my birth-eyes open; whether I find a way to meet what is incomprehensible and somehow draw strength from it. What matters is if we can make it to the cliff of yes and shout our secrets to the sky till Heaven is the song we choose to sing on Earth." Mark Nepo, Seven Thousand Ways To Listen-Staying Close To What Is Sacred.

As we wait at the departure gate and watch the board for our seat assignment, we are also watching people but  I'm thinking about the gardens I've planted through the years. When sissy and I were little girls, dad would let us help him plant the seeds in our backyard garden.  He did the hard work of readying the soil and we got to do the fun part. The soil in Illinois was rich and dark resembling the picture above. Here in Georgia, we have red clay soil.  I've had gardens in Mississippi, Indiana, Belgium, and Georgia. The soils were different in each place but plants thrived in each with the proper care.   

How will we grow during our time on the Camino? The picture above reminds me that like the little seed that was planted in the ground, we will lose the security of our daily routines, the comforts of our home, the ease of communicating in English and only time will tell what else. But I'm actually looking forward to the temporary losses because I want to grow in the way God has planned for me. 

So, Lord, help us to let go of our securities. You know that in our 44 years of marriage, we have spent time in the dark earth and have grown deep roots;  we have bloomed and twined around each other and reached for the light. Help us to climb and stumble our way along the Camino, up the mountains to the cliff of yes. Help us to recognize each person we come across on The Way and not to shun those who bear our flaws but to help them up. Whenever this journey seems too difficult, help us to keep our birth-eyes open; help us to find our way when we meet what is incomprehensible and somehow draw strength from it. We want to make it to the cliff of yes and shout our secrets to the sky til Heaven is the song we choose to sing on Earth, til You call us home to life everlasting. Thank you for this pilgrimage. Amen. 

Thanks again, Beth for your generosity.  Looks like we are #9&10 and there are 15 seats open.