Out the door and off to the airport early this morning.  Right now I’m onboard in seat 22A and the plane is backing out of the gate.  Rainy and gray outside the window.  LA should have some sun for me in a few hours.  

Just read Richard Rohr’s and Terry Hershey’s blog.  Love those guys.  And I am going to try and get my post written while I’m in the air as who knows what free time the rest of the day will bring.  Padre Tomas will be meeting me at LAX and will lead the way.  Which is a good thing for Felipe who always finds California confusing.

I got a serious list of people that I am taking to Lourdes with me.  And the list is growing.  I haven’t opened an envelope that Father David gave to me.  I am guessing there are more names in there.  

Oh, here is my sunshine.  And there is Mount Rainer off the port side.  I think I am the only one looking out the window.  Our devices seem to be more entertaining these daze.

The snow on the mountain blends right into the horizontal cloud cover, cool effect.  There should me more mountains visible coming up, Adams, St. Helens and Hood for now.  Oh, there is Adams.  Flying right over our old elk hunting area.  Can’t any trees or elk, too many clouds.  And there is Hood right below me.  I think I am see g climbers on it, is that possible?

Just want to mention that I really enjoyed My Rebecca’s sermon yesterday on gratitude.  She brought up some great points and possibilities.  One thing I need to look up as it deserves more study and that is Jesus and curing the ten lepers.  One came back to thank Him and Jesus told him something like go you are healed.  Healing only comes after thankfulness?  In the feeding of the five thousand also before the food was passed out Jesus prayed and gave thanks.  Thanksgiving precedes abundance.  Thank you Rebecca.

Well, I think that I will buy some food, had a rushed breakfast back five hours ago.  Thanks for taking this plane ride with me.  I will give you the latest from the Padre and the Producer later on.  Flying high loves, Felipe. 

Yup, in that packing mode, with a hundred details that all seem so important.  Just back from Mass with Catherine where Father David gave me the Pilgrim’s Blessing and handed me an envelope of people and things to pray for at Lourdes.  Off in a few moments to My Rebecca’s church because she is giving the sermon today.  Then at 4 is our walk and tapas.  I better have the majority of my packing completed by then.

Making myself tired thinking about all this stuff.  Have to trust that it will all come together, which it will.  Tomorrow evening having dinner in LA with Annie, Padre Tomas and some of the Padre’s fellow priests.  Looking forward to being there with them  for this get together.

Have to give you a report on our first supermarket parking lot tailgate party of the season.  It was nice and warm in the sunshine for Catherine and I to eat our bagels, donuts and coffee and talk theology.  She named this tailgate theology.  People pass by and say hi or they linger for a few minutes to talk and we sprinkle Camino dust on them.

It is quiet and peaceful here right now.  Time to take a few deep breaths and be grateful.  Ah, that is very good.  My Rebecca’s homily today is on gratitude so I am in the groove.  OK, time to go.

If you have anyone that I can pray for in Lourdes let me know via email.  I will try and make that happen for you and them.  Also the blog will continue there.

Later, love, Felipe.

Here I am Saturday and I am trying to make myself pack for the Lourdes trip.  I can do everything but it seems.  Had Bible Guys this morning and we are working our way through the very first book, Genesis.  We very seldom study Old Testament but I try and suggest it, love the stories.  One of the chapters we read today was 32 which includes the story of Jacob wrestling with God.

This is how we learn about God, how He chooses to reveal Himself, these encounters with real people.  There never is a list that says God is this and this and this.  That would be real tidy.  But tidy isn’t big on His priority list apparently.  But we have these stories.

Every once in a while there is a story that I can relate to.  I so related to this one today where Jacob spends a night wrestling with God and lives to tell the tale.  He is injured in the process and always walks with a limp afterward as a reminder I guess, a badge or medal so to speak.

This is what I have done for an extended period now I am seeing, wrestling with God.  I live to tell the tale but carry this cancer with me always as a reminder.  The important part is done for me.  Carrying the cancer afterward I have to remind myself is the reminder of this event, it’s my medal.

Working to prepare for this new adventure: pack, find passport, pray, wonder.  Will take you with me, dusty love, Felipe.

All of a sudden “On To Lourdes” sounded good also.  Do we have any English majors here?  Guess I can’t go wrong maybe.  Reminds me of the time when Annie came to walk Phil’s Camino for the first time March 2nd, 2014.  The day before I had placed five flat rocks going across Raven Creek so she could cross it without getting her shoes wet.  So, as she saw that on her first lap she said, “Oh, how Camino!”  I then said, “Please be careful I just placed them and they are a little wobbly.”  She replies cheerfully, “Oh, how Camino!”  What a lovely situation, right, when you can’t hardly go wrong.

That’s the groove I am looking for our pilgrimage to Lourdes, the no way to get it wrong Way.  Looking forward to spending some quality time with Father Tom or Padre Tomas as I think of him.  We need to better develop our stchick, as Kelly and I did when we had all that time and opportunity on the Camino.

And Kelly, just stopped by yesterday to see him.  He had a hip replaced exactly one month ago and he is getting around with a cane around the casa.  He says hello.  What  a guy, we always laugh together.

And got the four cabinets installed yesterday.  Catherine gave me a hand with that, the dear.  Father David was thrilled.  I was thrilled with the paycheck.  Still have to go fine tune them after I get back.  The wood has to get used to the new environs and things will move around a little.  I will try and remember to get a pic for you.

Well, that’s pretty much it for today.  I need to start thinking about packing my bag for the big trip.  So far all I got organized is the list of folks that I am taking with me to pray for.  I guess that is the most important thing anyway.

Miss you, love you, Felipe.

My emails this morning told of two people who I am taking to Lourdes with me.  They need some TLC.  One is short on the Spirit and good on health.  And the other is short on health and long on Spirit.  There are both going.

Months ago I decided to take all the people that wanted to go but were too sick to go.  There has to be a bunch of those.  I was once in that group that couldn’t go to Spain to walk the Camino.  I guess that is what empathy is.

Somehow this all feels like I am going to blast off to another planet, or time or dimension.  It has a sort of other worldliness about it.  Must be because it is such a holy place, holy meaning set aside or not ordinary.  Yes, that it is.

Have to go for now, duty calls.  Another beautiful day here.  Beautiful loves, Felipe.

Here it is ten at night and I am just finding some time for you.  Yike.  I am trying to finish up on all my loose ends before the big trip on Monday.  Had a productive day today with Catherine and I moving all the cabinets and tools to the job site.  Tomorrow will hopefully get everything installed and get paid.

I had to cancel the walk tomorrow morning.  It is just too crazy everything that I have going.  So, if you were coming here in the morning take a detour to the Burton Coffee Stand instead.  Sunday we will have the sendoff walk at 1600 with your last chance to see the preLourdes Felipe.

Take care,  love, Felipe.

Hey here we are with another day.  How are things there?  Was thinking about yesterday’s post and wanted to add to it.  We were talking of facets of wellness during the cancer journey.

I think that was all a description of a zone.  It was a place to be that gives meaning and a sense of possibility.  I like to be there as much as possible but can’t always.  It is a way to think about a goal or a way, a camino I suppose.

It is a place away from the doctor’s numbers and the hospital’s rules and regulations.  It is a different sort of healing.  I am grateful for my doctors and nurses and the hospital, don’t get me wrong, but it is not the complete answer to the situation.  To be able to operate and think in such a way that one has less fear, worry and general wear and tear must be a positive in placing the cancer in it’s proper place.  It is in the big picture only so important remember.

My cancer in my body appears persistent but lazy.  It likes me and doesn’t seem anxious to leave but at the same time it seems to be like a plant growing on a bad patch of soil.  It is sort of maintaining or existing and stunted.   I am not giving it the proper conditions to thrive.  Well, yes.  Thinking of my father-in-law who taught me an important lesson, if you can’t stop something bad from happening then learn to control it.  OK, yes exactly.

Sometimes, I say to people that God is keeping me alive for His own reasons.  That would be another way to say all this but maybe a short answer.  All these aspects of the situation that we have talked about are maybe the long answer to the same question.

OK, off we go to the wood shop.  Making progress loves, Felipe.

It was a action packed weekend with Annie and the gang.  We talked about that.  And we talked some about the Q and A that we did.  It all went pretty wonderfully.  There was some wear and tear but nothing a few days of recovery can’t cure.

So, part of the audience there at the church hall was made up of a cancer support group that was meeting there at the same time and came over.  And while the questions that Annie and I fielded were, as memory serves me right,  all about pilgrimage and the Camino, nothing much came up about cancer and that whole world.  Somehow now I am thinking that I could have guided the conversation more towards that.  But maybe I will do it now as some of those folks might be coming to the blog as a result of the talk.

I don’t know if I have anything particularly new to say but there are some basic ideas that I could review.   This is all beyond and/or in conjunction with your treatment.   One, from Dr Zucker’s teaching, exercise can be used as a form of medicine.  Movement strengthens the body and that gives the ability to do more.  It builds on itself.  Movement actually cuts down on fatigue which seems counterintuitive. I have found that exercise outside in a peaceful environment brings added benefit.

The ability to cut back and limit fearfulness is something to be pursued.  Fear and worry are huge wastes of energy.  Any amount of that that one can save can be plowed back into health and that grows on itself and pays off.

Beware of isolation.  Be open as possible about your condition.  Meet with others who have similar problems and are positive about it.  Stay away from all forms of negativity.  You have little time to waste on that.

Dwell in the bigger picture.  Dwell in the Spirit.  There is peace, energy, hope, nimbleness and joy there.  You deserve all that, every bit.  You can learn to live in this musical.

Be with family and friends who know how to support you.  Community is a form of medicine, thank you Erica de America.  Practice buoying each other up.  Everyone is playing injured, they need you, you need them.

Have a purpose.  That could take many forms I suppose and would be as unique as you are unique.  You are the only you that ever was or ever will be, give it to people and expect it from them.

Learn to spend as much time in the moment as possible.  Trust and don’t worry too much about the next step.  Concentrate and celebrate the step you are on.  You are the beautiful flower that is growing up out of the crack in the concrete, be there!

Love, Felipe.

The trail is doing it’s best to dry out after that two weeks of rain.  Coming up I will be on a pilgrimage to Lourdes so no walks April 30 through May 10.  But other than that will be here for you.

Monday 0900-1000

Tuesday 1600-1700

Thursday 0900-1000

Sunday 1600-1700

Keep coming, Felipe.x

Hi, the best to you.  I have two reports for you today.  One is about yesterday’s event at St Michael’s in Olympia.  Continuing from yesterday’s blog post where we were driving down, the five of us plus a film crew of three were there.  Albout 55-60 folks showed up. They sat for the short version and Annie and I did at least a half hour of Q and A and My Rebecca joined in to help with that.  I think everyone took something away of value with them.

Then last evening Catherine made all of us a dinner and afterwards we watched the new long version.  It has the new original musical background.  At the moment it still needs color and sound correction but the story is being told.  It seems pretty impossible that it could be better than the short version but everyone is loving it that has seen it.  It really fills out the story better and more completely.  There is more Kelly, more Wiley, more Spain.

Yea, it is alperfect once again.  Thanks to you for checking in.  Let me go for now.  Love, Felipe.