Wonder and Awe
One of the great benefits of walking the Camino de Santiago is that you spend most of your waking hours outside walking and enjoying the scenery and landscapes, the sunrises and sunsets. Our very first day of the walk, walked in the dark by the light of a moon till we got into the foothills of the Pyrenees Mountains and experience a gorgeous sunrise over the valley below (see photo at top of this blog entry). We were in awe of the beauty of nature. We were filled with wonder and expectations of what was to come.
Rabbi Abraham Herschel has written in his book, “God, In Search of Man“, that awe is not an emotion; it is a way of understanding. He says:
“Awe is itself an act of insight into a meaning greater than ourselves.”
Many times during our walk, we experienced awe, sometimes it was in the beauty of nature, or at a breathtaking Cathedral. We also experienced awe at the wonderful hospitality and welcome from those we met along the way. Both Terri and I were very open to whatever came along our path and tried to keep ourselves ready to be “awed”. This is a good way to live our lives. We should keep our eyes looking for the wonder and the awe in life. Rabbi Herschel is right when he said:
” I prayed for wonder instead of happiness and you gave them to me.”
When we got back home, one of my promises to myself was to spend more time outdoors now that I was retired. I have largely held to this promise and I can say I have experienced many times with “wonder and awe”.
Let’s keep working on finding the “awe” that is all around us!
Blessings and all grace be with you!
John
Photograph of the Week
I captured this image during a hike a few years ago up Perry Creek. It was definitely and “awe moment”!
weareallpilgrims 