Plans

I'm thinking of taking a trip. No, not a hike this time. Well, not only a hike.

I'd like to go to Medjugorje, to pursue and deepen my new relationship with Mary. Then I'd like to visit Lourdes, walk the Camino de Santiago, then down to Fatima. What I'm hoping to do is actually walk that whole way: Lourdes to the Camino, then from Compostela down to Fatima.

Depending on how things end up with the sale of my house, it could be an extended trip. What I'm hoping to do is to put all my stuff in storage rather than buying another place right away, then spending a longer time in Europe. Part of it would be doing regular travel things; castles, cathedrals, and museums, you know, and maybe seeing some old friends. But also, there's a place there in Medjugorje, a kind of semi-monastic community for men where one can stay a while and seek God and wholeness. And I'm thinking maybe I'd like to do that, before I decide on my next step.

Whether I can do this will depend on some things more or less outside my control. My house has to sell. And I've actually got a contract on another place. But it's provisional on my current one selling, and will expire after 90 days (or like 80 now, I guess) if it doesn't. And there could be other, unforeseen factors, which change my plan or prevent it. As everything, it's all "the Lord willing".

I've started backpacking again, to get back in shape for walking. I won't be carrying as heavy a pack on the Camino, and I've been told it's not nearly as physically difficult as the AT. But still, it's good to be in shape. And I need to anyway. I'm finally really losing weight again. I went to the doctor a week or two ago, and I was down 16 pounds since my previous visit at the end of December. Once Lent is over, I'm going to hit the gym again; I haven't lifted since before my long fast, over two years ago now, and I never really recovered the upper body muscle I lost during that fast.

What I'm praying is that my house will sell for close to what I'm asking, but not in the next 90 days (so I can get out of the other contract without losing my earnest money). I'll spend that time training and continuing to get fit, brushing up on my French (and seeing if I can pick up some Spanish while I'm at it), then when I close, move all my stuff into storage except my backpack, and hit the road. Or the sea, rather. I'd like to take a ship passage across, if it is practical to do so, rather than flying. Buy a Eurail pass, do my things, then decide where to go from there. Maybe I'll just never come back.