codex calixtinus

in the move kung fu panda, panda is stuffing his mouth with sacred fruit and the wise and ancient turtle makes a comment to him about letting the past go, letting the future wait, and to remain in the present. he says, that is why it is called the present because it is a gift.

yes, i frequently take insight from cartoons.

i have been rearranging my apartment today to make room for new things and to get rid of old things. in the midst of moving hundreds of books, i found something i had been missing for a long time. i found my paper passport from when i walked the camino de santiago and a map my dad made on the computer to mark my journey across spain.

it seems like long ago that i made that 500 mile journey by foot, and yet it seems like yesterday too. sometimes i forget and then i see my walking stick, or my knees and back will hurt just like they did in spain. or i will see pictures or hear from a camino friend.

i had been missing my passport for some time now, and tonight i finally found it. the passport gets stamped at every place you stop and stay along the pilgrimage. i unfolded the worn pages and it all came flooding back. i sat on the floor in my room and started crying. i saw the stamps from all the places i had stayed and a peace overcame over me. the pilgrimage causes you to laugh, cry, shout, sing, and be silent all in the same breath. pretty incredible and unbelievable.

the camino
the pilgrimage
is neither distinctively past, present, nor future. it is all three. it calls me to be present to the journey of the past, to not fear the future, and to be as attentive to the now as i can be.

when i most need to be reminded that i am whole and loved, or to be tranquilo, i will dream about the camino, find my lost passport, or wear the boots i wore then. inevitably i always cry.

on the last page of the passport there is the following prayer. it is the pilgrim's prayer from the 12th century. i share it with you now, so you too can bask in its "pure awesomeness" according to po the panda.

God, You called your servant Abraham from Ur in Chaldea, watching over him in all his wanderings, and guided the Hebrew people as they crossed the desert. Guard these your children who, for love of your name, make a pilgrimage to Compostela.
Be their companion on the way,
their guide at the crossroads,
their strength in weariness,
their defense in dangers,
their shelter on the path,
their shade in the heat,
their light in darkness,
their comfort in discouragement,
and the firmness of their intentions;
that through your guidance,
they may arrive safely at the end of their journey and,
enriched with graces and virtues,
may return to their homes filled with salutary and lasting joy.

Amen.