The
Camino has been a very positive experience for me and reporting on the progress of
the hikers kept me busy and filled my days with joy. As they returned the stories of their many wonderful
experiences started to unfold, and I was overwhelmed by hundreds of photos. It has been a life changing experience for them that has touched them in
many and different ways.
Eddie
Waring hiked 900 km from St Jean Pied de Port in France ,
past Santiago to Finisterre on the north west
coast of Spain St Jean to Santiago Burgos ,
bus-hopped a 100 km before Leon ,
but hiked the extra 100 km from Santiago
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| Susan, Gerda, Nancy Powers and Esther |
They
have made friends on The Way, some of which have been in contact with me since.
One such person, Nancy Hill Powers left a message on our MSA facebook page
saying that she admired the conviction of my friends, and inspired by them, she
wrote about their encounter on her blog.
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| The tag, here on Gerda's backpack |
The
tags that the hikers attached to their backpacks drew the attention of fellow
hikers on numerous occasions. They’d
notice the tag one a hiker, and then days later on another hiker at a different
location. Questions followed that
created opportunities for our hikers to talk about MSA and hand out their mini
flyers. At some stage they were
questioned by a group of school children. At other times they shared their story of our
friendship on a more intimate level whilst spending a quiet hour or two walking
alongside another pilgrim.
Our
friend, Ermanno Aiello, author of the book ‘Forever a Pilgrim’, and his lovely
wife Lia, invited all who were involved with this project to a post-Camino get
together at the restaurant on Vergelegen, one of the beautiful and historic
wine estates in our area. Although Eddie
hasn’t returned from his travels, and Gerda had another engagement, the rest of
us spent an unforgettable morning together.
Many heart warming stories were told, the food was great, and the people
were extraordinary. Thank you for this wonderful
treat Ermanno and Lia.
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| At the back; Frans Albertyn, Jan and Esther Nieder-Heitmann, Oscar Ferreira, Johnny van Rhyn, Lia and Ermanno Aiello, Emilene Ferreira, Hugh Holtzhausen. Front; Susan Albertyn, me, Karin Holtzhausen |
Although this wonderful experience as come to an end, I suspect that we will be talking Camino stories for some time to come. I am also looking forward to the promise of a typical Spanish pilgrim’s meal here at my home in the very near future.
Something
so fulfilling naturally leaves quite a void when it draws to an end…but MSA Day
is coming up soon...and there is some talk of an exciting project next year...
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| Some of the hearts seen on the Camino by Susan |
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