Sunday, May 12, 2024
This morning many, many people in our albergue woke up very early (3-5am) in order to make it to Santiago in time for pilgrim’s mass at 11:30am. We decided we didn’t want to race in today, so we let everyone sleep in until 6am. By that time most pilgrims had left or or were leaving.
The walk to town was really fast. Betty hooked up with her friend Blanca, and they got out ahead of us, and the kids and I spent quite a bit of time just trying to catch up.
This was the first day on the Camino that we met other kids younger than the high-schoolers. It was a group of elementary students from Santiago walking as a class with their parents. Once every month they walk one section of the Camino from Sarria to Santiago, and today they were finishing their ten-month journey. It was a really cool sight to see.
Today, more than any other day, there was a river of pilgrims, and there was such excitement in the air.
We walked straight from Pedrouzo to the Monte de Gozo without a stop. It’s the last climb before Santiago, and from there you can see the city and the cathedral. It was quite a sight. Tradition says that the first person in your group to see the cathedral is King, and Ian has that honor. He was really proud of it.
Like many other days this week, today was a great reunion of so many people we’ve seen on the Camino. And we met new people as well.
After the Monte de Gozo, Betty needed a bathroom, so we stopped at a huge park just down the hill from it. Ian and River played for a while while the rest of us just took a little break.
After descending the Monte de Gozo, you lose sight of the cathedral for quite some time, and it’s a long and pretty boring road through town until you finally make it there. We hooked up with an American couple who really took to us, and they walked most of that part with us, but when we got really close to the cathedral, they told us that it was our moment and we should go through alone.
I was really grateful for that tender mercy.
You actually enter the plaza in front of the cathedral (called the Plaza do Obradoiro) from behind the cathedral, past the Puerta de Azabachería and then through the Arco del Palacio. In that tunnel, most of the day, there is a bagpipe player, and her timing for us was perfect. The kids went just a bit ahead of me and Betty, and we were able to record them as they entered the plaza, with the stirring music of bagpipes accompanying them. Betty and I were both overcome with emotion.
Inside the plaza we had more wonderful reunions with friends, some of them whom we just met in the past few days. We spent quite a bit of time there just taking pictures and chatting and taking it all in. It was joyous and full of love. I feel like we got just a little taste of heaven. The only thing that was missing were our friends and family from back home. I know they will be there when we cross the veil of death.
After the Plaza do Obradoiro, we went to the pilgrim’s office to pick up our Compostela and Certificate of Distance. These are official certificates (written in Latin). The Compostela verifies that we completed at least 100k of the Camino, and the Certificate of Distance verifies the distance we hiked. That certificate says 779, but I’m calling it an even 800 because my very reliable Apple Watch says we hiked a total of 820km. That’s over 512 miles. I can’t believe we made it.
The language of the Compostela reads:
The Chapter of this Holy Apostolic and Metropolitan Cathedral of Compostela, custodian of the seal of the Altar of St. James, to all the Faithful and pilgrims who arrive from anywhere on the Orb of the Earth with an attitude of devotion or because of a vow or promise make a pilgrimage to the Tomb of the Apostle, Our Patron Saint and Protector of Spain, recognises before all who observe this document that: …………… has devotedly visited this most sacred temple having done the last hundred kilometers on foot or on horseback or the last two hundred by bicycle with Christian sentiment (pietatis causa).
In witness whereof I present this document endorsed with the seal of this same Holy Church.
Issued in Santiago de Compostela on ……… of …………… year of our Lord ……….
The Dean of the Cathedral of Santiago.
Our albergue here is perfectly placed, just a few doors down from the pilgrim’s office and very close to the Plaza do Obradoiro. We also got our own room, and there was a really nice shower. What a relief.
Because it was Sunday, all of the supermarkets were closed, so we had to go to a restaurant for dinner. They were only serving pilgrim’s menus, which are pretty expensive, but it was the only option we had. Then, the most amazing thing happened. When I went to pay, the bartender told me the meal had already been payed for. I looked at Betty, and she shrugged her shoulders. I asked who had paid, and he told me that a pilgrim had come in, said hello to us, and then paid for the dinner. Then we remembered an LDS family (mother, brother, and adult son) who we had met going into the church. They had recognized Alicia’s FSY shirt!
In the evening we went to the Pilgrim’s mass. Unfortunately, Betty was really feeling down by this time. She was coming down with some kind of flu. We hung in as long as we could, but eventually we had to duck out.
Our plan tomorrow is to rent two cars (actually cheaper and faster than taking a bus or train) and drive to Madrid. I hope Betty’s feeling up to it.
I’m so grateful to be here. I’m so grateful for Betty and the kids for doing this with me. There is no way to adequately describe what this journey has been like. It has been challenging, and inspiring, and beautiful, and educational, but it’s difficult to describe exactly what we’ve learned. It will take some time to unpack it all.
Tonight, as the evening wound down, I went out to the Plaza do Obradoiro to see if I could get some good pictures. I’m not sure they turned out great, but it was good to be there. It is going to take a long time to get there, but over the weeks and months I’ll be processing and posting photos that I’ve taken with my good camera, so be ready for that.
When I returned, I felt an inexplicable feeling of melancholy. I looked back on the Camino and second-guessed a million decisions that I made from the very beginning. It was a dark feeling, and one I had a hard time getting out of.
But I did get out of it.
As I have been thinking back on my entries in this journal, I realize that I have been quite matter-of-fact about our experience. I know that I have mentioned a few miracles and tender mercies along the way, but I’m not sure if I have adequately described how much we have relied on the hand of the Lord throughout this entire journey. My prayers every morning and every night were fervent that God would give us the strength and safety necessary to finish this. In moments when I have felt pain and fatigue, my heart has turned to the great hymns, some of which come from our pioneer ancestors, and many of which we share with our Christian brothers and sisters: “How Firm a Foundation,” “Come, Come Ye Saints,” “Onward Christian Soldiers,” “Hope of Israel,” “Carry On!” “Lead, Kindly Light,” and so many others.
My heart has also turned to the sustaining prayers that I know have come from family and friends far and wide. Time after time I have felt the sustaining power of those prayers. They helped me on the ascent to Valcarlos, the Alto de Perdón, the Cruz de Ferro, O Cebreiro, and the Alto do Poio. They helped me on the brutal descents after each of those places. They helped me to help myself and my family navigate complicated feelings of fatigue, frustration, and almost crippling homesickness.
There is a saying on the Camino: “The Camino provides.” I never felt totally comfortable with that phrase because it’s God who provides, but then I remembered the scripture that says “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Light.” Christ is the Way, He is the Camino, and He has provided for us over, and over, and over again.
So the Camino is a metaphor for life, which is not (just?) a journey to Christ, it’s (also?) a journey with Him. He has been there all along.
One more thing to add, today is Anahi’s birthday. I love her so much, and I’m so happy that she has been with us on this journey. I know that the lessons she has learned here will serve her well throughout her life. She’s amazing, and I’m sure she will do amazing things in the future. But most of all, I just love being her dad.
