Pilgrimage

OUR HISTORY

 

In 2001 I walked, with a friend,  the 850km from St.Jeam Pied De Port in France, over the Pyrenees and on to Santiago de Compostela on the ancient Camino Frances.

 

We travelled light - a single change of clothing and a sleeping bag. No tent. No cooker. No mobile phone. We stayed in the (then) free hostals along the route never worrying about what we would eat and where we would sleep. Just as Jesus advises us. Well, actually we worried quite a bit until we gradually learnt to trust that He would provide for us each day. You see we believed in theory - now we had to experience it in practice. It was life changing.

 

There were no maps -just a willingness to trust the footsteps of the pilgrims and the yellow arrows painted on walls and roads to guide us. We learned to "seize the blessings of the day". To take with gratitude whatever water, food, guidance, companionship, resting place and fun came our way. we were freed from the tyranny of choices.

 

And if something didn't work out the way we planned - the result was usually something better.

 

Later, I realsied that this experience could help many others too.

 

We offered a Coventry Pilgrimage 2007 walking in similar fashion for ten days at three different speeds to cater for people of differing abilities. Then we did it again in 2009. A couple of dozen each time.

 

Then in 2012 we changed tack. Why go to Spain? Why not walk from where you are? Isn't God here too?