For my birthday this year I received many wonderful gifts: a glorious hike through the woods, a relaxing massage, a beautiful handmade card from a fellow pilgrim, and a visit from my dear friend from high school, Ariel.
Me and Ariel out to dinner in Astorga
I’ll admit I was both excited and nervous while walking to the León cathedral, where we had agreed to meet. It had been at least two years since we had seen each other. She had just spent the last eight months traveling around the world, wrapping up her trip in Spain to visit her host family (she spent a semester abroad about a year and a half ago) and to join me on the Camino for a few days.
She greeted me with a wide beaming smile, skipping towards me with a floral dress and butterfly printed leggings, her hair cut into a short wild curly bob.
She gave me a big hug and said, “I’m so excited to see you!! And to eat churros!”
Oh, how I had missed her.
It was such a lovely and insightful experience to reconnect on the Camino! Lovely because she is such a delightful spirit to be around, insightful because we uncovered a lot of our past that had begged to be addressed and mended. The first day we walked together old wounds resurfaced within a matter of moments, and we found ourselves in the perfect place to discuss them with love and emotional maturity- something we weren’t capable of in the past. The Camino was the perfect place to make amends and move forward in our friendship- something we both wanted. I am pleased to know that she will be living only about two hours away from Olympia; she’ll be attending Western Washington University in the fall.
Rose, Ariel, Jess and I all enjoying a picnic on the floor
We talked about many things on our long days of walking together, discussing past conflicts that happened not only between us but in our friend group, old boyfriends, etc. Talking with Ariel on the Camino made me realize there are others from my past whom I never had closure with, or I never apologized to. There are times on the road when I wish I could beam them in, to see them and hug them and tell them how sorry I am for ever causing them pain. I’ve been struggling with the idea of sending these people letters- some apologies are way overdue, and I wonder if by reaching out now I’ll be mending wounds or just picking at scabs. This contemplation can sometimes be quite arduous and so I was thankful to have Ariel’s input when she was here. She is a wonderful friend.
We also had a conversation regarding the importance of mindful speech and manifesting our own realities. I recently finished a book by Paulo Coelho, Brida. There was a part of it that discussed the concept that “God is in the word,” and that whatever words you speak sends an intention out into the universe. When my birthday came around, Ariel told me to speak my wishes aloud after blowing out the candles. “If you keep them to yourself, how can you expect them to manifest into reality?” she said.
The more positively we talked about things happening to us on the Camino, the happier and lighter we felt, and the more positive energy we felt emitting out into the world. The more we spoke and acted from a place of love, the better our days became.
The day before my birthday has always been Earth day, which has been so much more exciting to me in recent years than my actual birthday. Exactly two years ago on Earth day, I taught my first yoga class (guess what, it was Earth day themed). But I think every day should be a celebration of the Earth. I reflected on the Camino on the importance of this day- the Camino is saving the planet in many ways! Every year the Camino prevents over one million people from driving cars for at least 30 days, saves millions of wasted plastic bottles and such (everyone has a water bottle or camelback) and water waste from toilets and showers. The Camino is a beautiful thing. I’m so thankful for the gifts it brings.
Ariel enjoying the flowers and sunshine on Earth day
xoxoxo
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