I really haven’t a clue but we are past Sarria so you know we have got to be close. Here is our schedule which we should be able to keep for another couple of weeks. Come by but wear your rubber boots and a smile.
Monday 0900-1000
Tuesday 1530-1630
Thursday 0900-1000
Sunday 1530-1630
Felipe.x
The hummingbirds are a joy and we have been seeing them regularly since Catherine came by and installed a feeder outside a kitchen window. A “build it and they will come” sort of thing. They are just so small and delicate and they manage to survive these nasty ass winters of ours, a miracle. They should be in some place with blue sky overhead and mariachi band music in the breeze. But glory be they are here to keep me company, super!
Speaking of mariachi bands, today is the Lady of Guadalupe feast day. We are having a big afternoon and into the evening celebration at our parish here on Vashon Island. We will be at part of it for sure. What a marvelous holy day. North Americans are just not as familiar as they should be with the Lady of Guadalupe story. It is mucho powerful and equally fascinating. Please Google it for a knowledge update. She waits for you.
Off to walk in a moment. Gray but dry out but there is some standing water on the trail. It is definitely rubber boot territory. Come join us when you can, we walk and talk, easy peasy.
Monday loves, Felipe.
Our local Padre, Father David, said, “Our only real obligation is to be joyful.” Yea, I had to check with Catherine on that but that is what the man said. Fire and brimstone and rules and regs must be in there somewhere but at the moment that was all we really have to worry about. It is an Advent message.
So, with that in mind… Today I have a Seahawks game to watch, it starts in 45 minutes. And I have a session with Sister Joyce my beloved spiritual advisor later and then a walk after that. A full afternoon for Felipe.
I had the great luck to meet Laurie Ferris from caminoprovides.com while we were in Berkeley last week. Lovely person and maybe check out her site and blog. There is also nice Camino gear there for purchase.
And Steve Watkins is going to have a new daily blog starting up pretty soon here. That may be at the beginning if the new year. You can sign up for that at his old blogsite.
And a shameless plug for the store at philscamino.com. Lots of great gear there for all your Caminohead friends. We have everything but fruit cake on there, check it out.
OK, time for lunch. Remember our only obligation. Thank you Father David? Miss you all, love, Felipe.
If I remember right this is a bit of Russian history. A troika is the three horse setup used to pull vehicles where the three are abreast. We don’t have anything like that here in the States.
I have a troika going with my three “C’s”. My Cancer, Catholicism and Camino is a team that pulls me along. Each one of those three has a whole world around it. For example the horse Cancer is the whole world of that for me which includes my family, friends, doctors and nurses. It is that world that the disease cancer brought together. And Catholicism has its own world, a spiritual place with it’s many moving parts. And likewise the Camino isn’t just a physical trail it is a Way, a spiritual world of the hearts and minds of pilgrims past, present and future.
These three strong horses work together to get me through the snow or down the road or wherever I need to go or is worth going. They are a team. That is the way I see things at present.
Yes, that’s the way we roll around here. Off to lunch and a few hours of work. I know we don’t have much time now due to the upcoming holidays but once in a while leave a comment, it keeps things lively. You are the best, love, Felipe.
At the hospital early and I have a little time to complete my earlier thoughts. Yes, a tremendous article came in On FaceBook that I read this morning.
And it is not newly written, 2009. It’s been hanging around waiting for me to find it. But the basic idea is that increasing numbers of cancer patients are surviving as compared to years past and many of those folks are experiencing extra special quality of life due to their brush with death. But by golly we already sort of discovered that in our little corner of the world right here. Neat to have it seconded by another source.
It’s not all fun and games because folks die here. We have to acknowledge that obvious fact while we go on our merry way. But so far so good as we say around here. Might be our turn next, never know and actually don’t care. It’s all in God’s capable hands anyway.
When I tell someone that I have something really weird to tell them and then I say that cancer is the best thing that ever happened to me, it is what this article is talking about. Strange but true as they say. This is part of what we have been wrestling with here at Caminoheads for almost three years now. And I guess we have more to go.
Yup, well that enough for now. You guys are super, love, Felipe of the North.
Well, that is a quote from an article I just read from Psychology Today. But my problem right now is that I am out of time. Need to shower, jump into the truck and head for Seattle soon. Just want to make it clear that I love you, just in case I haven’t said it before. Hehe, Felipe.
Big snow storm happening here, well big for us. And it is the Immaculate Conception of Mary, day of obligation today. So I braved the elements to go to Mass and not a Protestant in sight out there.
Then I was just goofing off while I should have been writing you all. But I discovered Pink Martini and I was watching one UTube video after another. Check out the singer Storm Large on the song Amado Mio. Smokin!
Yup, still coming down out there. Isn’t this why I got out of Buffalo? Yea, it’s cute for a while, a short while.
OK, short one today. Way to many things going on right here in the sucking vortex known as Christmas. So, I got stuff to do and so do you so we are ending it early. Love you, miss you, Felipe.x
Back at home after five days on the road, five wonderful days I might add. We met and talked to so many great folks. People came and watched Phil’s Camino and we shared stories and ideas. But right now I am tired.
Thank you everyone there in California for your great hospitality. You folks were so kind and generous. It is really a pleasure to be around you.
Well, I’ve got to be up at the crack tomorrow morning and off to Seattle and the hospital for my dose of chemicals. And we are due for some snow in the evening. Should I take the two wheel drive truck or the four wheel drive truck? Big questions to be answered.
I think that I will leave you here for now. I want to read a few pages from Don Quixote. I’m proud to announce that I am on the second half of it.
Love, Felipe.
OK, it’s 6:48 in the evening and I am in bed. A full day with two showings. One for Catalina’s class and one for the community. The community one was pretty straightforward with the standard QandA afterwards. But the class was three hours of questions and discussion. But what a great bunch of people.
We just got back from a tapa bar where we made up a supper of little plates. So, I am going to pass out here really soon and catch up on my sleep. OK, flying out early in the morning and will blog somewhere along the way. Thanks and love, Felipe.