During Judith Feins trip through northern Spain she explores the popular pilgrim trail called the “Camino de Santiago”, which has its end in the Cathedral of Santiago de Campostela. During her travels she meets all the different people that decide to take the pilgrimage, which clashes with the idea of the stereotypical pilgrim in the average person’s eyes. The people walking the road come from all walks of life, from different countries, and profess beliefs in a variety of religions. Their reasons given for taking the pilgrimage range from spiritual, to more of a personal objective.
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During her trip Judith Fein also comes in contact with the people that help the pilgrims along the way. They provide directions, housing, etc. some due to their love for the idea the “camino”, and the process of discovery or awakening that they hope to inspire in others. It is because of this that Judith begins to question her ability to contribute to the “camino”, as she isn’t sacrificing much by staying at comfortable hotels, and using cars and other methods of transportation. But it is the realization that there is no “minimum” that has to be done to contribute, that her work as a writer was equally as valuable, that gives her confidence that she herself was also serving the pilgrims in a small way.
If you think about it, writing about it is maybe serve el camino in a bigger way than walking it
ReplyDeleteHer writing about "El Camino" is a way of serving it, maybe because it is a form of memoir about her experience and that of others during the journey. Her writing serves as a vessel for people to learn about "El Camino" and also to attract more potential pilgrims to complete the journey.
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