As we enter the Celtic Autumn season, I’m delighted to have this opportunity to pause, reflect and, share a little about what is happening in my world.
Early summer came with a rush of energy, mirrored by fluorescent yellows and rich greens of the fertile plains of Northern Spain. I could not stop walking! The deeply trodden path of the Camino Frances captivated me once more, turning my planned week away into a 5-week adventure of exploration and learning.
Strange things happen to time on the Camino! With each footfall and subtly changing view, I was immersed in drifting memories, the sparking beauty around me and gently rising ideas about how best to respond to the summer season’s spiritual question – how do I mature in service as I step into my new role of pilgrim mentor for an extended 2 month Camino this autumn?
In my companion psychospiritual guide book – Radical Transformation, Alexander John Shaia cautions us to allow our gifts to mature, before speaking of them.
Wise counsel!
There is much that I feel unable to express as yet.
Mirabai Starr, in Wild Mercy, puts it this way;
“Sometimes – we need to turn ourselves inward and give ourselves permission to not have a clue what is going on or how to make ourselves useful.”
My new role, and the words to describe it are forming slowly – not yet ripe for expression.
I recognise the pattern though – let me go back a little further to a fruitfulness that I can now describe.
One memory that impressed upon me while I walked was from the last journal entry I made after walking my first Camino in late 2019. The words, written with some incredulity, articulated a previously unspoken longing. They had remained secreted away, forgotten, and unread for many months, seeds buried in the closed pages of my notebook.
“If you can’t find the community to which you belong. Create one!”
Through 2020, the seed had germinated, roots grown and that secret longing had ripened into a crop of Heart and Mind Communities. As I walked the Camino this summer, I was accompanied (remotely) by the magnificent circle of Heart and Mind Community conveners – an ever-growing harvest from those early community plantings. We continued a series of online weekly workshops, even as I walked, reflecting together upon convener skills, archetypal energies and, most importantly, the cultivation of presence.
A highlight for me was in Burgos, when the cathedral bells, in perfect synchronicity, rang out our time together.
As summer warmed, and the earth grew dry, I watered the seeds in my heart, to give the healthy and positive elements of my aspirations a chance to manifest.
I returned twice to the historic village of Castrillo de los Polvazares and the beautiful retreat centre Flores del Camino.
We gathered around a nightly fire, shared stories, delved into the symbolism of ancient Christianity and folklore and felt a palpable connection to the earth, the stars and our pilgrim ancestors.
We learned about the hidden, manifest and symbolic elements of sacred geometry, of aesthetic principles and the need for right proportion.
We painted our creations with natural earth pigments and recognised geometry around us in nature.
I also started to see the hidden, manifest and symbolic elements in the practices employed in Heart and Mind Communities – a hidden structure in which free and safe space is held. The use of symbolism and metaphor to support exploration and new insight so that gradually, our ever-growing authenticity is made manifest in changed attitudes and behaviours.
These are some of the elements I wish to take forward as I continue to co-create communities in which we empower one another, ask questions, listen and respond in ways that support collaboration, formation and authenticity.
The path is being created as we walk it. I look forward to the next pause, when I can turn around to cast my gaze to the path just trodden.
