Monday, April 18, 2011

Pilgrims book excerpt 7 - arrival

I will not remember much of these last few hours before reaching Santiago. During the final push to Santiago, I unearth and expend the last ounce of strength I possess. Every step hurts and it takes all I have to keep walking. Yet Santiago is also a force that keeps pulling me, like the current dragging at my feet.

When we crest a hill and see the city spread out beneath us, it is a disappointing mess of billboards, cement towers, tightly packed houses and city streets. Alex races on and I stumble behind, blind to everything around me, mechanically putting one foot in front of the other. We finally reach the heart of this ancient city. Our walking sticks grate and tap on uneven cobblestone streets. The Camino is poorly marked here, which is strange. I’d almost expected streets of gold.

Then finally it is before me – the cathedral’s towering stone walls adorned with statues, turrets and spires. In the central spire stands St. Jacques, cloak thrown back over his shoulders, staff in hand. My own joy is dull and weak.

I shuffle into a dim interior packed to bursting with people. I am straining toward the voice of the priest, but the crowd is so thick that soon I can go further. My legs give way and I sink to the floor, slumping against a marble pillar.

I am only vaguely aware of the lofty room filled with gold statues, frescos and ornate decorations, the lilting voice of the priest. Most real is the cool stone against my cheek, the deep, deep fatigue of my body.

I remember those who asked me to pray for them and see them again in my mind’s eye - the kind old priest at St. Michel, the woman whose husband had Parkinson’s, the man who gave Armand and me fresh cherries. In what way I can, I form a prayer for them and add my own words of humble thanks. Tears unchecked stream down my cheeks, completing the prayer of gratitude I cannot put in words. When I open my eyes a beam of sunlight is streaming down from the high cupola directly to where I sit.

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous9:54 PM

    beautiful and moving.. . thank you for re-sharing your unique insights and experiences of the camino!

    -Erika

    ReplyDelete