Walking the Camino de Santiago
By Pam Luschei
When the movie, The Way, with Martin Sheen came out in 2010, I watched with piqued interest, and then went about my business. It wasn’t until 2022, when a friend asked if I wanted to go with her to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain. My answer was, “why not?”
In 2018, after the sudden loss of my husband, my world was transformed, physically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually. Grief mauled me like a bear, and I began the slow process of recovery by walking the dog, going to therapy, writing, finding new friends, and reconstructing a different life.
For me, and for many, walking the Camino de Santiago is a statement of where they are in life. The Camino experience offers a sacred space to explore their inner life, while going outside to just walk. For some it has a spiritual element to it. Solitude, quiet, silent prayer while walking offers a practice that can be transformative.
Tim Keller said, “Shalom experienced is multidimensional, complete well-being—physical, psychological, social, and spiritual; it flows from all of one’s relationships being put right—with God, within oneself, and with others.”
My pilgrimage gave me the space without distractions to pay attention to myself, in my new identity as a widow. The 10 days I walked the Camino allowed me to “be” not “do” as I reflected and reviewed my life over the past 5 years. In looking back, I was able to reconsider the future that was unfolding as I walked in silence among the trees, birds, and blue sky.
Walking my grief out in creation brought alignment to my soul, a sense of connection with beauty, and healing for my broken heart. Taking the pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago was more than a walk; it was a path toward wholeness.
About the Author
Pam Luschei has been a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist for 25 years. In addition, she is a Certified Grief Informed Professional. She is also a writer, author, and speaker. She brings authenticity and encouragement as she writes on her blog/website www.gratefulyetgrieving.org which she started in 2019 after the sudden loss of her husband. She has two adult children and shares custody of their German Shorthaired Pointer, Murphy.
