Simplicity just might be one of the greatest lessons I learn on the Camino.
Before I even got on the plane, the Camino requires me to ask a very basic, but difficult question: What do I really need?
Every item in the backpack and suitcase matters. Every extra pound eventually makes itself known. I very quickly learned the difference between what is necessary and what is comfort.
Somewhere along the trail, simplicity began to feel more like freedom rather than sacrifice.
Freedom from unnecessary things, freedom from distractions that quietly take over our lives without adding value.
When life is reduced to walking, eating, resting, and finding the next destination, something changes inside. Small things suddenly matter more—a hot cup of coffee when you get out of bed, a shower with hot water and soap, a comfortable conversation, dry socks, the sound of the ocean, a place to sit and relax at the end of the day.
The Camino has managed to strip life down to the basics, and it reminds me of what is really important.
I am beginning to understand the importance of this part of the pilgrimage—not just walking across a country, but learning how little I truly need to feel alive
3 Responses
I giggled a little bit when I thought about you and the weight of your backpack, and thinking about what you brought with you! What a cool place your thoughts are! Thank you for sharing them.
I don’t need anything else. Well…….just this one more thing. 😉🤣 But in your list of necessities at the end of your day, I didn’t see wine. And we both know that should have been number 1!
Freedom rather than sacrifice. That’s a good motto for so many things. We hold onto things and think that it’s a sacrifice to give them up when what we don’t understand is what you’ve explained so clearly. Giving up our things is freedom not sacrifice.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!