Annie and I were on the phone on the 18th of February and she reminded me that that was the date I had sent my first letter to her three years ago asking whether she could come and walk with me. I had just gotten to San Juan de Ortega on Phil’s Camino, about a third of the way across. And it seemed like a few hours afterward that she wrote back, “How about March 2nd?”.
Here is the notation in the logbook in Annie’s writing for March 2nd: Buen Camino (Heart Symbol) Annie O’Neil. Yea, it was raining like a son of a gun that day. The day before was nice and the day after was nice but the 2nd was a downpour. But we walked and talked and hit it off. And really that was the start of our whole relationship and the whole film project. It just wasn’t going to happen without Annie but we all didn’t know that yet. We were still walking in the mud, a phrase I am fond of.
That was three years ago and a whole lot has happened since. I have to mention that Saint James is the Executive Producer of this whole shebang because really we didn’t do it on our own. So much fell together as if by magic. In the end it is all good and we are all the richer for it. But surely it couldn’t have been done without Annie. Thank you so so much and Happy Anniversary. Love is squishing out all over, Don Felipe de Viana.
Truly the Divine One had big plans for you both – what a wonderful thing you had your ears open for God’s whisper. So happy for you both and all of us who love you.
Thank you Catherine, your writing is like a soft summer breeze. We are all lucky to share this time together. Felipe.x
Well how lovely! I remember that day, and reading that FB private message SO clearly! Sometimes monumental sea changes in our lives are unrecognizable until we are halfway through them. Other times, we see each step clearly. That is how this is for me. I can see each moment as though it is ticking by like the stopwatch on 60 Minutes. I read it, reread it, then brought my laptop over to my husband to read it to him. He googled Vashon Island, the mystical place we had never head of, and I crafted my response. “How about March 2.” I remember it so well!!! Also each step: the ferry ride over, meeting you when you came to pick me up, the ride in your truck, the cup of tea at your kitchen table…and of course, the walking. The walking. Just like along the Camino it all comes back to the walking, doesn’t it! This has been one heck of a Camino, Felipe! You never cease to amaze me, and I have wandered this Camino feeling St. James by me at every turn. Thank you for sharing yourself so fully. Knowing you has made me a better human being. The success of PHIL’S CAMINO is so gratifying to me because it means that more and more people are seeing your inspiring message. More and more people are seeing an alternative. More and more people are finding hope. Thanks my friend for being such a good person. Thank you for being so much fun to hang out with, travel with, do Q&As with. Thank you for living so loudly. Thank you for giving so fully. Thank you for so many other things I may not have the words for. Just thank you.
And yeah, Happy Anniversary!
Happy Anniversary Annie ~ Did our lives change, did we switch gears, did we go around a corner? I don’t know for sure but something major happened. But what can you expect when you hang around with St James, right? I think, “How about March 2nd?” is going to turn into a saying like “Bob’s your uncle.” Alperfect, love, Felipe.
Thank you for sharing that rich history with us of how all these spin off relationships have occurred. We are all the recipients of this very first encounter and all the gratitude that have have since commenced! Love me some Annie and Filipe and everyone else who has become part of this special team and love project!
Carol ~ yes, the ripples that came off of that initial meeting are still on the loose. Meeting and working with you has been a pleasure my dear handler. Alperfect, love, Felipe.