By Rev. Laura Folkwein
Are you among many who have taken this summer as a chance to reunite with family, take a long-postponed vacation, or hit the trails wherever you are? Do you watch travel shows on TV or listen intently as others recount their journeys? I love to ask returned travelers for one story from the trip or “what was your favorite meal, view, or experience?” A friend went on the trip of a lifetime this summer and documented his time generously on social media. I poured over his photos and descriptions. Another friend is taking a few short days to walk a few more miles on the Camino de Santiago in Spain. I am envious, even of her blisters. Others have taken up motorcycle touring (after a lifetime of touring on a tandem bicycle as a couple). The travel bug is real and ferocious!
This month at Pilgrim, our worship theme is “Quest: The Awakened Traveler.” Preparation for the series awakened my travel bug and brought back memories of journeys taken long ago. Mindful travel, or pilgrimage, is travel with intention and purpose wherever you are headed (or even if you are watching Rick Steves on TV). There are three stages to travel in the spirit of pilgrimage, they also reflect the ancient three-fold mystical path which can guide a journey as close to home as a labyrinth walk, a work commute, a hike, or a local errand. Here is the three-fold path:
1 – Leaving/Letting Go/Purgation – One must plan and prepare (at least a little) before departing. We pack up and we must decide what to leave behind, be it one more pair of shoes (in my case…), or beloved friends, family and pets, responsibilities and tasks undone. One must let go, or purge (hence “Purgation”), before one goes anywhere. There is also plenty of dreaming and anticipation in this stage, and perhaps a few nerves. One must also let go of what is known to take on a new journey with intention. Have you ever travelled with someone who couldn’t leave their work email or social media alone? Or who kept recounting the past as you explored brand new places? You know then, how important letting go/purgation is.
2-Encounter/Illumination/Reflection – Once you have arrived, who will you meet, planned or unplanned? What sites will you see and what will they mean to you? Will you let the ocean waves or crunch of boots on path soothe your soul? Will you open yourself to difference? A dear friend told me a story about visiting Iraq as a peacemaker during the Gulf War. When her taxi driver learned she was an American, he absolutely refused her payment. She is from the southern U.S. and her manners reflect her roots. She insisted again and again on paying him. He responded, “You are a guest in my country. I cannot accept your money.” In a country at war with the U.S., hospitality to strangers, no matter their origins, remained the highest priority. Just hearing the story of such an encounter changes me. How has your travel changed you? Expanded your world? Increased both your joy and your sorrow?
3-Union/Reintegration/Returning Home – Most of us must return home eventually. Perhaps you have packed your bag full of souvenirs for yourself, and others, and cannot wait to share them with accompanying stories. Maybe your phone or your camera is packed with photos, which you will pour over for years to come. Maybe you have an upset stomach and a rash, your bank account is empty, and you cannot wait to sleep in your own bed?! Returning home is part of the journey. Did you learn something about yourself or the world that you want to include in your life, like a new recipe, a commitment to simpler living, new friends? Did you promise to return one day? How will those you left at home respond to your changed self?
Most of us travel, even in imagination and memory. To travel with intention as a “pilgrim” is to pay even closer attention to oneself and one’s surroundings, strange or familiar. Let’s see what this path of awakening might reveal to us about ourselves, our Source, and our communities – far and near. It is good to be with you on the journey.