Comments on pilgrimage after three weeks on the via Francigena - July 5,2015

We have had some ‘what is this all about moments’.

I have been thinking about the importance of the side of the road you walk on. This of course is metaphorical for the importance of the side you choose in important issues.

There are a lot of factors you have to weigh in choosing the side of the road. Where is the most shade, what direction is the traffic coming from, which has the softest shoulder, which has a shoulder, what direction are you going at a busy roundabout. The answer is never totally clear. You have to make compromises. It is important, because making the wrong choice could have catastrophic consequences, especially on very busy highways.

Russell was thinking about why people go on pilgrimages. If they have a clear goal, like quitting smoking for example, at the end they may not quit. Some people may go a pilgrimage to find an answer, but never do. I was suggesting that by going on pilgrimage you connect with nature, and rediscover that sense of awe with creation. They say that by going on pilgrimage your sins are forgiven. If that is true, Russell and I must have quite a bit of credit saved up.

I had established a goal of trying to forgive a person that abused me. I found it very interesting that prior to leaving on this trip, this was the subject of a number of Peter’s sermons. I also did some research on what it meant to forgive someone – something I had never done before. I had assumed that forgiving someone meant you would be ‘friends’ with them again. That is certainly what my mother and father had in mind.  Once I realized that forgiving someone was about my acknowledging the pain the abuse had caused, knowing that I didn’t cause it, I can’t control it, and I can’t cure it, and that I was not condoning the abuse, and didn’t have to let the abuser get into my personal space and continue to abuse me – I realized that I have forgiven them!

I also haven’t mentioned all the beautiful butterflies in the fields. In particular, there have been many sightings of the most wonderful tiny fluorescent blue butterfly, some black and white butterflies, monarchs, and many others.

I should also mention that the deer/horse flies are totally miserable and a constant companion in the fields/woods.

In our first three weeks we have walked 382.4km of 459km and climbed 7.2 km (this only represents the days we were keeping track of the accent). We have 593km left to Rome.