Trust and the Camino
Trusting each other
The beauty of the Camino is yours when you learn to trust, for it is through trust you will receive unexpected gifts.
The Camino is about trust. Trust that the yellow arrows will lead the way; trust that if help is needed it will come from others; trust that there will always be rest at the end of the day.
Trust - to have confidence in something, to hope and to expect that something is true, that we can depend on someone or something, that we won’t get harmed…life without trusting someone or something is nigh impossible. But trusting someone to be coming home on time, for example, is different to have a basic universal trust in life, that there is meaning and beauty regardless, that it is ok to not control everything and can therefore leave the responsibility for a good outcome on someone or something external.
When setting off on the Camino it often takes a while to get out of habits we have: planning every day, booking accommodation, packing for every eventuality, downloading gpx tracks to our mobile, asking anybody we can think of whether it’s safe to walk the Camino on our own, will there be others, can I drink the tap water, is there way-marking… We want to experience something extraordinary, yet often we find it can only happen when on our terms, trusting only the people, systems and things we know.
And the Camino then teaches us, if we let it, how much deeper trust can go. We experience that life works very well outside our normal framework: that the way-marks are indeed there when needed, that we can make friends with other pilgrims because of who we are and not because of what we present, that help will be there in whatever form when needed, that there will be a bed at the end of the day, that we can trust in our own abilities and internal resources, and that we can handle and master unusual situations like sharing a dormitory with others.
Of course, we all have a different starting base so trust layers are revealed depending on this. What’s normal for one, like walking on your own and sleeping in the open, is totally anathema for someone else. But the trust experience might be very similar: that life ultimately is trustworthy, and that things have a way to work out, so it’s ok to relinquish our normal controls. And that we have enough internal resources and strength to handle what is being thrown at us. And through this we discover that there will be people who will help when needed, for example. And the person helping us could be the scruffy looking hoody, or the aloof appearing gentleman, or a way-mark appearing when we think we’re lost, someone making several phone calls to find a bed for us, someone else sharing their meal, … the possibilities are endless, life itself becomes trustworthy.
Of course, common sense still applies, trust doesn’t not mean that we should throw all precautions to the wind like looking after our valuables, for example. But a basic sense of trust in life, or whatever power we believe in, is something that makes the Camino so special for many. The challenge is to maintain this when returning home and going back to our old ways. Why not be the one to spread the same trust back at home? Why should it only be a Camino experience?