Padrón to Santiago de Compostela = 15.3 miles

“I acknowledge that I am a unique and precious creation.”

The final day of walking. The pilgrimage was coming to an end, in physical form. Like all the other days before, we rose before the sun and packed our bags. Fog lifted off the River Star and covered our fresh socks and tired ankles. With a belly still full from last night’s famous Peppers of Padrón, I opted for a quiet cup of tea and breakfast roll at a nearby cafe.

Considering the distance we had covered in other travelling days, we did not concentrate on the terrain as we usually do. Instead, I felt the electric buzz of anticipation: this was it. Today was the day it all would end. There is always a heaviness when the thing that took months to prepare for, and then intense effort to pull off, is over. I feel this after a Christmas holiday or a long family camping trip. All the wondering, planning, working, stressing, and surviving will be over by this evening. But I was ready to go.

Contributing to the buzz was the sheer number of pilgrims on the trail who we had seen filling up the restaurants, paths, and churches of Padrón. Before yesterday, we had only seen about 10 pilgrims on the Coastal and Central Routes from Portugal. Now, here we were in a place where many routes funneled into the final leg of the trip. With a pep in our step, we set off.

The path took us through small villages and forested hills. After an hour, we paused for a light snack and surveyed the pilgrims’ ant trails in the distance. We were all coming together, one big Camino Family.

I took some time to meditate on today’s CoDA promise #9: “I acknowledge that I am a unique and precious creation.”

I was struck by the verb chosen for this promise – “acknowledge”

This means that it is not an opinion that I am unique and precious. It isn’t up to others to decide, knowing that their opinion may shift. It also highlights that I was created that way by God. Claiming these adjectives as my own allows me the freedom to be fully alive as a unique and precious creation. If I know in my soul that God does not make mistakes, how can I ever doubt that the things in me are from Him? This includes my scarred heart and codependency. These challenges that I am working to overcome, the thought processes I am tenderly cultivating to change, and the relationships that I am re-evaluating and protecting are all put in my life by my Creator. And here I was, a unique and precious creation, on a unique and precious pilgrimage. Regardless of how many other pilgrims were on this trail today, I was doing My Camino, My Way, and it was unlike anyone else’s.

The sun popped out just in time to find a spot for lunch. We were already almost halfway done for the day, and a peek at our fitness app showed that it was our best pace of the trip, not surprisingly. I filled up on extravagant steak and fries and marvelled at the feeling of joy and contentment. The adrenaline was the backwind pushing us forward, and at the end of the day, Santiago was waiting for us.

Once we got into downtown Santiago, we found the current into the Plaza and flowed with the foot traffic. It was summertime, so the sun bore down and radiated our bones. My tender feet ached to be free from their shoe cages, and anticipation made me impatient in the twisty-turning route. The maze of the city heals an alarming volume of chatter, cars, and smog, and just like when we stepped from the coastal route to the central route, I had to adjust my thinking. We weren’t the only ones finishing today. In fact, on average, I read that about 1,800 people were travelling the Camino and finishing every day in July 2021.

Santiago de Compostela, Spain

We moved into the funnel of crowds and made our way to the square. I had a shortness of breath, and like most, couldn’t wait to throw down my pack and stare up at the incredible 12th-century church holding the remains of Saint James with bare feet and a happy heart. The square was crowded, but as soon as I found a sliver of sunshine and empty cobblestone, off went my shoes and down went my body. I reclined on my pack and took a moment to breathe in the finality of all that I had worked for and endured.

I am an easy-crier, so I let the tears bubble and flow, quietly thanking my body for all it had done, thanking God for all He had provided along the way, and thanking my friend for bringing me on this incredible adventure.

We spent the next two hours waiting for our turn to get our stamps inspected and received our Compostelas and distance certificates. Then it was off for a final shower and to find food. My Pilgrimage was over, and my vacation was about to begin.

We booked 2 nights at the cushy Hotel Alda Bonaval, which had a large bathtub, my one request. It was deeper into the city, away from crowds and a nice return to the quiet D and I had cherished on the Portuguese Camino.

The lightness of the evening, because I had no packs on my back and no more kilometers to climb, was euphoric. Just like with anything else, I had to adjust to the noise of others, attitudes of the locals, and the new reality of “what now?” Setting goals comes easily to me, and working for them is a motivator that keeps me feeling accomplished. However, the hangover that inevitably comes when a goal is fulfilled is an emotional roller coaster I have not learned to handle without fear.

This was a huge accomplishment, and I loved watching my friend fulfill something on her Bucket List. I was a voyeur in her story, along for the ride, and I didn’t have the decade-long dream of finishing the Camino. However, I will always be grateful for the invitation and intimacy she extended. Because the Shellie who finished her day in Santiago, Spain, was not the same as the Shellie who started in Labruge, Portugal, just 8 days prior.

I am now acknowledging myself as a fully alive, unique, and precious creation.