Day 5 – Walking to Estella – Date: 4/19/2025

Today I was walking in rain.  It was okay but after about 4 hours I was ready for it to stop.  Thankfully it did and I even took off my rain gear.  An interesting thing happened to me on the way to Estella.  I passed the back side of a road sign where someone spray painted graffiti.  This wasn’t the beautiful, artsy kind.  This was derogatory.  One image was the Jewish star, then an equal sign, then a swastika.  I didn’t care for it; thought it was horrible and proceeded to wonder how people can be so cruel.  I decided to pray for them.  The people in my prayer pool were skinheads, Hitler, all of Hitler’s men that did terrible things to so many people, etc.  I even put a certain political figure in the group since I was praying for all the people I don’t understand, don’t care for, etc.  Someone told me once to imagine people you dislike as babies so you can stir up some empathy.  I thought that was genius and have used it quite often.  Anyway, at the very beginning of my prayer, a voice popped into my head that said “Put yourself in the circle too.”  I initially thought “What?  I’m not like them.”  I was learning my lesson of inclusion vs. exclusion. 

As I walked I realized that I was judging those in the circle I was praying for.  They needed my prayers.  I am outside this circle and what, I don’t need the same prayers?!  Am I better than them?  Who am I to think I know the answer.  As long as there is any means of exclusion we are not leading with love, with forgiveness.  I had already discounted the people I put in my prayer circle and initially didn’t even realize it.  So I put myself in the circle, walked and prayed.

This experience is why I wanted to walk the Camino to begin with.  And alone.  This is an example of what I alluded to previously about listening to the quiet.  How many times in my busy, chaotic life have I missed such messages.  I know in 30 days I will return to my busy, chaotic life.  I just hope I take some of these lessons with me as I return.  I think they make me a better version of myself.

Blister count: 3

Traumatized toes: 2

Sore body parts: many

One Smile: big and happy I am here!