Saturday, September 28, 2013

Camino: Day 7 Revisited

This is what I had for breakfast a year agoBiscocho y cafe con leche.  Unbeatable, in my humble opinion.


I paid for the first biscocho.  Miguel gave me one "for the road".  I finished it well before the halfway mark.

Here's what I thought about a year ago during the walk.

In reflecting on my walk over the past few days, I'm coming to the conclusion that I have a deep discomfort, even dislike, with who I am.  In the eyes of the world I must be a nobody: no career, no family, no property, no car.  Nothing.  What do I have to show for my 42 years of living?  Seemingly nothing.

I know that God is not looking for any accomplishments.  In his eyes I'm a deeply valued person, created in his image, but I still feel massively disappointed with who I am.  I don't meet my own standards (nevermind the world's).  I feel like a failure quite often.

I guess this is what walking alone for long periods of time can do: it's like facing a mirror for a long time.  As you keep looking at it, you begin to see yourself without a mask on, as you really are.  You see the warts, the freckles, the imperfections, signs of age, etc...  I'm not as bad as I make it out to be here, but I'm certainly not as good and happy as I pretend to be.

I'm not sure if the way I feel about myself has changed significantly in the past year.  I keep thinking "if only this happened...." or "if only I could......" or "if only that issue was resolved..."

Maybe others are more satisfied with their lives than I am, but I doubt it.

I have a massive hunger to do another Camino.  But this time the purpose would be much less about discernment, and much more about the search for and enjoyment of community.

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