My Uncle Went on a 150 Km Pilgrimage and All I Got Are These Nine Observations

My uncle, Rafa Cacho, 66, went on a ten day trek on the Camino de Santiago with his wife, Teresa, my parents and some friends.   Also known as The Way of St James, the pilgrimage originates in France and ends at Santiago de Compostela in Spain.  

Some of the things he brought back with him and I thought be perfect for this Holy Week:

1.   Learn to be patient and you shall overcome:  The trials we experienced came courtesy of the weather – heat, cold, rain – and exhaustion. 

    2.   Meet different cultures and be friendly:  We smiled at and greeted strangers.  Be ready with “hola,” and “buen camino.”

3.   Hopeful for the youth:  I’d observed there were many young people at Mass in the town of Portomarin in                    .

    4.   Everyone is helpful to one and all:  My in-laws, Joaquin and Nie Nie, had lost their way and a farmer showed them the right path.  If your intentions are pure, people will give good advice.

    5.   Nature’s beauty is all around:  All you need is to notice it and see God’s way and love for all. 

    6.   Find your weakness:  Recognize them and you will find your Camino in life.

    7.   Your Camino in life would be made purer if you try to walk in Christ’s way:  Do this through prayers, studying Christ’s life and to read up. 

    8.   Don't allow thoughts to linger in your mind about your needing to be recognized:   Thinking of the good in others is better. 

    9.   Recognize that there are events that are meant to be:  Teresa, Nie Nie, Joaquin and I went to a small church as we left the town of Arzua.  A lady of 88 years old gave Teresa a Camino shell made by a father named Paco who had lost a son.

A while later on the road, we’d met a trio of Americans who were two doctors and a medical assistant.  We had a nice conversation about how good Filipina nurses are and their work values. They’d noticed and asked Teresa about the shell given to her by the  old lady.  She’d explained how it was made by a father in memory of his lost son. 

It was then that the medical assistant shared that she, too, had lost a son.  Teresa gave her the special shell and both hugged and cried knowing in their hearts that the special shell was really meant for her. 

Did they both meet by chance or was it meant to be?