Today in Meeting I thought about my life's journey. So many unexpected twists and serendipitous surprises! I think I've always been curious, a seeker, the type of person who relishes life and who savors each moment .
At lunch today with Friends we spoke of our family's trips to Europe. I shared the deep connection I feel to places like Paris and London. CatGirl added her insights from our various journeys abroad. Such lovely memories!
As we talked I thought about how my travels are a pilgrimage of sorts--yes I'm sightseeing, but I'm also feeling to places on a more metaphysical level, using my imagination to get a greater sense of the people who inhabit these places now or who have lived there in years past. Canterbury cathedral was such a powerful space that my bones nearly vibrated with the thoughts, hopes, and dreams of the many pilgrims who had trod its well-worn steps. Our wizened guide opened our minds to the legends and lore that surround each stone in the structure. Our visit to the petite hospital where the infirm awaited their anticipated healing was heavy with the hopes of thousands of pilgrims, as was our cruise around the river running through the town. Such a holy place. And such a privilege to have experienced it with my loved ones.
Someday I intend to make a pilgrimage journey on foot--to somewhere old, ancient and meaningful. But for now I navigate this path of my everyday life and I attempt to imbue each step with the fervor of my convictions. For I desire to live each moment as if in expectation of the miraculous, or as if a prelude to divinity.
PS: Kudos to John and the many lovely photos that he's taken of me during our travels together!
PPS: Do note the presence of my favorite black sweater in this photo. :)
4/15/2007
pilgrimage
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8 comments:
Wow, great photo! Did you see the ghost of Thomas Becket?
My cousin was an Anglican monk at Canterbury, and I got to see many places there that tourists do not ordinarily see when I visited him there long ago. You are absolutely right about the power of the old cathedral. It stayed with me for a long time. I also liked going to old and ancient places in England- Avebury, Salisbury Cathedral, Glastonbury, Silbury Hill, the prehistoric settlements in Dartmore, mentioned in the Hound of the Baskervilles, and, well, much, much more.
What a marvelous place- and Whitstable too.
Thanks for reminding me of Canterbury. John did a great job with that photo.
We didn't see the ghost of Thomas a Becket, but our guide just about had me convinced that we did ;)
Like you, I love Glastonbury. I hope to visit the other places that you mentioned someday. For me it's not only deep history, but the history of my ancestral roots (some of my Mom's people came from Southern England). It was the same eerie feeling I had when I stepped off the teeny airplane at the Isle of Man (again, where my Mom's people are from). On a bone-deep level I just knew I'd been there before and I felt as if I'd just come home. Of course I felt that in Paris and Reims and I don't have any people from there (though my husband and kiddoes do).
Great picture, Jana (and John). You look like you're pondering something deep and meaningful, and the background adds to the effect.
(Which makes me think you were probably just wondering where to go for lunch.)
Kaimi: where to go to lunch is _always_ on my mind when we travel! On this occasion we dined at such a charming little place right on the river that runs through town. The photo is here.
I've got a question for you, Jana. When I went to London (the one Europe experience of my life at this point...), everytime we actually left London we went with a tour group because we couldn't drive there and couldn't figure out any other way to get around.
So my question - did you guys drive, or did you go with a group, hire a driver....how did you get to all those places? I get a little nervous with the planning aspect of venturing out of the heavily populated and touristy areas outside of the states.
Great picture, by the way. You look vibrant and pensive. :-)
From Paula (who can't seem to post tonite):
journeygal, when we've gone to England,we've used trains for stuff in southern England where that's relatively easy, like going to Canterbury from London.Then we take a train somewhere to the country, and rent a car there. Once we rented in Bath, another time in Edinburgh, but out at the airport on the edge of town, another time in Carlisle in the Lake District. Driving is somewhat nervewracking, and we're always glad to bid fairwell to the vehicle, but it's the only way to get to the really cool places without being stuck on someone else's schedule.
Jana, when I went to Canterbury with my kids, there was a school group there-- the kids were given medieval style robes and got to crawl up the aisles on hands and knees -- very fun to watch. Then later some of them talked to us and gave us kind of a history lesson about the people in the tombs. But they were a bit embarassed to be unsure of some of it. I told them that they had a lot more history to keep track of than we did.
JG:
Europe has a wonderful train system! Each time we've gone we've bought Eurail passes (or some form of inner/inter-country railpass). In the cities we ride the metro/tube. When we go to the countryside we take the bus if there's no train access. Occasionally we take taxis for a trip if there's no other way. On one memorable trip in Calais we shared a taxi ride with two strangers to save some money.
We are weird in that on every trip (even stateside) we try to take the train at least once and we avoid using or renting a car as much as possible. It's an easy thing to do in Europe. Not so easy in the states.
Oh, and to brag a bit about how awesome my kids are: we went to Europe the first time when CatGirl was 3. That wee little thing had a small roller suitcase that she pulled around on trains, subways, in cabs, on ferries, airplanes, you name it. She was so adorable and such a trooper! We pack light and make our vacations so FUN! Last time we came home from London the gate checker couldn't believe that we each just carried a small daypack and we'd been in Europe for 2 weeks (read: we wash socks and undies nightly).
Oh, and we usually go overseas with my mom & sibs so we have lots of extended family fun along with side trips with just the 4 of us.
You look fabulous Jana. That was also my oldest daughter's favorite stop while in the UK last year.
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