The journey has its own rewards

Camino 2023: epilogue

When one door closes another one opens.  Our Camino de Santiago in 2023 did not go as we had planned or foreseen.  Not everything can be in our control, and that fact was certainly true in this situation. Leaving the Camino was heartbreaking.

First, I want to thank all of you who have expressed concern and support for me and our situation.  This was a frighting event; we had no idea what was happening.  Really, we still don’t.  I want to assure you however that I feel OK and am pursuing avenues to try and get at the cause of what happened, and to remedy it. One of the challenges is that, since retiring, I’ve had to change my primary care physician. I have a new patient appointment with an internist, but as seems common these days with our healthcare
system, I can’t see her until January. I went to see a doctor at an urgent care clinic the day after we got back and they ordered blood tests. The results were inconclusive. I was referred for physical therapy which I start next week. The crazy thing is that we may never know what exactly caused my legs to give out.  If nothing serious is found, and therapy and exercise improve my symptoms, then perhaps what caused it doesn’t matter.

So now, moving forward, our plan and great desire is to try again next fall. Between now and then I will focus on my health and fitness to ensure, as much as possible, that this doesn’t happen again. Lori and I have discussed starting in Roncesvalles, skipping the Pyrenees altogether. I feel like I would like to start in Saint Jean Pied de Port and conquer the part of the Camino that defeated me.

I will continue to post occasionally to this blog, detailing as we’ve done before, our progress in preparing for another attempt.  Buen Camino. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Efl0G4SUdiM

WARNING: this video is R-rated (language)