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Goodness and Mercy on the Camino

In September, my sister and I (along with our husbands) walked a portion of the Portuguese route of El Camino de Santiago de Compostela (The Way of St. James of the Field of Stars or The Way to the Well-Ordered Burial Place of St. James – translations vary!). We began in Porto, Portugal, and walked 170 miles in 11 days (maps at the end of the blog). Today I share some of my favorite photos from our journey, clustered around the words of the 23rd psalm, quoted here from the NRSVUE. I recommend you take in the psalm headings and the images first, and then if you are interested in the specifics of time and place, go back through to read the captions.

Many thanks to my husband, Tim, and my sister and her husband, Tracy and Robb Keizer, for their permission to use their photos and for joining in on this adventure of a lifetime.

And be assured that I will be writing more about my good and merciful experiences on The Way in the upcoming months.

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD

On the final day of our walk, a shepherd asked us to pause so that she could lead her sheep across the road to find pasture. It was one of my favorite moments on the Camino.

 

Eight sheep graze in a pasture on Day 4 of our walk between Barcelinhos and Ponte de Lima, Portugal.

I SHALL NOT WANT

I walk, back-pack free, to a pool at Hotel Scala in Padrón, Spain, where I will soak my tired feet after our tenth day of walking.

HE MAKES ME LIE DOWN IN GREEN PASTURES

On Day 2 of our walk, Tim rests on the lawn of a church between Labruge and Arcos, Portugal, having finished his lunch of bread and cheese, olives and oranges.

HE LEADS ME BESIDE STILL WATERS

A stone bridge over a quiet stream in the forest variant between Redondela and Pontevedra, Spain (Day 8).
Tracy and Robb wade in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean in Labruge, Portugal, at the end of our first day of walking.
Just before it starts to rain, I cool my feet in a pool at Quinta São Miguel de Arcos after our second day of walking.

HE RESTORES MY SOUL

I experienced moments of joyful restoration as I ate chocolate, journaled daily, said hello to dogs, and drank coffee.
On our longest day of walking (Day 4 – 22.5 miles), I took pictures of flowers to restore my soul: the pink woolly grevillea, the blue morning glory, the orange and yellow lantana camara, and my favorite: the purple, white and green passionflower.

HE LEADS ME…

Yellow arrows and shells point the way of El Camino.

IN RIGHT PATHS FOR HIS NAME’S SAKE

Paths from left to right and down:
Leaving Porto, Portugal, on Day 1; enjoying the boardwalk of the coastal route on Day 2;
walking next to a stone wall between Arcos and Barcelinhos, Portugal, on Day 3.
Paths from left to right:
Tim rejoicing over the soft dirt walking surface between Barcelinhos and Ponte de Lima, Portugal, on Day 4; Robb walking beneath clusters of grapes and me hiking a steep incline between Ponte de Lima and Rubiaes, Portugal, on Day 5.

Paths from left to right and top to bottom:
Walking under an overpass on Day 8 between Redondela and Pontevedra, Spain; enjoying the rising sun while walking through a forested area on our way to Redondela on Day 7; a stone path and then a dirt path through the forests on Day 11, our final day of walking to Santiago de Compostela.

EVEN THOUGH I WALK THROUGH THE DARKEST VALLEY…

A close-up of one of the sculptures from the monument Tragédia no Mar in Matosinhos, Portugal, a place we walked past on our first day.
The people depicted in this monument face the sea in anguish. The sculptures are a tribute to the 152 fishermen who perished in a storm off the coast of Leixões on December 2, 1947.

I FEAR NO EVIL

A tunnel with an arched entrance in the fortress of Valença, Portugal. The fortress overlooks the Minho River which is part of the border between Portugal and Spain. We crossed from Portugal to Spain on Day 6.

FOR YOU ARE WITH ME

A small church along the Atlantic coast, just north of Labruge, Portugal (Day 2).
The Church of the Pilgrim Virgin in Pontevedra, Spain.
The morning skies as we left Pontevedra, Spain, on Day 9 of our walk.

YOUR ROD AND YOUR STAFF…

The tiny curls of fern growing from the side of a stone wall.

THEY COMFORT ME

A picture I took outside the little coastal church and sent to a friend for whom I was praying on Day 2 of our walk. Hand on My Heart.

YOU PREPARE A TABLE BEFORE ME IN THE PRESENCE OF MY ENEMIES

Left to right and top to bottom:
Stopping for lunch in a church graveyard between Caldas de Reis and Padrón, Spain on Day 10; Tracy and Robb providing each other back rests as we stopped for lunch on stone slabs between Tui and Redondela, Spain, on our second longest day of walking (21 miles on Day 7); a tiny bunch of delicious grapes the Creator provided on our longest day of walking (22.5 miles on Day 4 between Barcelinhos and Ponte de Lima, Portugal); delicious passion fruit juice and a passion fruit from a local vendor on Day 6 between Rubiaes, Portugal, and Tui, Spain.

 

Left to right and top to bottom:
Squid, the best cheesecake, a chocolate and pistachio croissant, prawns.

YOU ANOINT MY HEAD WITH OIL

The only time we walked in the rain was the morning of our longest day: gentle and refreshing beads of water on Tracy’s and my hair.
Robb and Tracy consult their maps and apps near the end of our shortest day of walking (12 miles between Ponte de Lima and Rubiaes, Portugal).
Tim lifts his face to the sun as he rests against a stone wall.

MY CUP OVERFLOWS

Left to right:
Tracy and I raise our wine glasses at our hotel in Arcos.
We enjoy a beer at an outdoor cafe in Santiago.

SURELY GOODNESS AND MERCY WILL FOLLOW ME ALL THE DAYS OF MY LIFE

After we crossed the bridge leaving Ponte de Lima, Portugal, on the morning of Day 5, I stopped to turn around. This was the view behind me. Sometimes we need to look back to see what we have left behind and what goodness and mercy are following us.

AND I SHALL DWELL IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD

The sun breaks across the roof of the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, the morning after we arrived.

MY WHOLE LIFE LONG.

I rest in a portico, looking out at the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
A Palestinian flag waves in the breeze.

 

 

 

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Picture of Heidi S. De Jonge

Heidi S. De Jonge

Heidi S. De Jonge is a multi-vocational pastor in the reformed tradition serving as a chaplain in university and long-term care settings and as a trainer and practitioner of conflict transformation and restorative practices. She lives in Kingston, Ontario, with her husband, three teen-aged daughters, and one middle-aged dog.
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10 Responses

  1. Well done! I love walking the Camino. It is a privilege to meet people and hear their stories. The question, “Why are you walking the Camino?” never fails to elicit fascinating responses.

    Reply

  2. Really enjoyed your photos matched with the verses! I also walked the similar route this September. ( added Spiritual Variant) Special experience for sure. God bless

    Reply

  5. This is so good, Heidi . . . it filled my heart today. I’m so glad you shared those photos and some of the stories with us.

    Reply

  6. Such beautifully paired pictures and scripture. Having just visited the cathedral of Porto, with a picture of the shell arrow in front, your post resonates. How lucky you all were to do this together.

    Reply

  7. Great essay. Your husband looks as young as he did when he was my mother’s hospice chaplain in 2010 and even when I taught him at Calvin in 1997! Please give him my best.

    Reply

  8. Perfect start to my Sabbath. My previous 3 days have been joyful. A new Ethiopian friend and I explored Iowa. We were awestruck at the fall colors and the beautiful people we met. Our God is awesome.

    Reply
  9. Pingback: My Moment on the Camino - Reformed Journal

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