Walking with purpose

12 August 2025

My children always say that I walk too fast. I have always responded that I am walking with purpose, needing to get to where I am going as quickly and efficiently as possible. I celebrated my 50th birthday this past June and to celebrate, I am leaving in 8 days to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain. I intend to walk with purpose, but not hurry. This journey is for me to spend time with and challenge myself; not the mom, or the wife, or the LVT. Because, before I was all of those things, I was just Amanda. I learned about the Camino from my father who has walked several different routes. In 2022, my dad and I, along with two uncles, a cousin, and my brother, walked the last 100 km of the Camino from Sarria to Santiago. It was just a taste of what the Camino is, but I was hooked.

The Camino de Santiago or the “Way of St. James” is a pilgrimage that became recognized in the 900s AD as people journeyed from all over the known world to the reported burial location of St. James. The Catholic Church of the middle ages encouraged believers to take a pilgrimage at least once in their lives; to Rome, to Jerusalem, or to Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. Nowadays, people walk the Camino for a variety of reasons, including just the physical challenge. I am going to walk the “French Way” which is the most popular route. The pilgrimage “starts” wherever you are but the Camino Frances traditionally begins in St. Jean Pied de Port in France and heads over the Pyrenees mountains into northern Spain.