A Pilgrim Profile

There are some souls who have traveled the Way more than once,
who are drawn to pilgrimage regularly in their lives,
and who are rich with wisdom gathered from their conscious journeying.
Margaret is one of these souls, a woman I know only virtually
through one of the several Camino forums on the net.
Margaret is in her seventies now and has walked the
Camino Frances seven times, the first time in her mid-sixties
fulfilling a life-long dream.
She is preparing to begin her eighth Camino
later this year and she is an inspiration to many on the forum,
where she offers well-thought-out nuggets of advice and directs
pilgrims to her extensive blog entries on her seven journeys.
I am a fortunate pilgrim because Margaret has taken me
under her wing and regularly checks on my progress
with regard to preparations, both physical and spiritual,
for the Camino.

Here are a couple of the many wonderful quotes
which Margaret has found inspiring and which
she freely shares to those aspiring to the way of the pilgrim:

This reflection on the art of walking has become a favorite:

Few people know how to take a walk.
The qualifications are endurance, plain clothes,
old shoes, an eye for nature, good humor, vast curiosity,
good speech, good silence and nothing too much.        

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Margaret also shared this with me today:

As Sir Walter Raleigh wrote in the 16th century in His Pilgrimage

GIVE me my scallop-shell of quiet,
My staff of faith to walk upon,
My scrip of joy, immortal diet,
My bottle of salvation,
My gown of glory, hope's true gauge;
And thus I'll take my pilgrimage....

And my favorite from Margaret herself is this:

Each pilgrim creates their own pattern as they move along.
After all my Caminos I know my strength;
'slow, but dependable’ could be my motto.
Trusting my gear, tenacity and ability to endure
I try to take it as it comes enjoying the good and bearing the bad.
After all this is life.