Month: October 2019

A Blank Slate

The power of dreams.

In a post several weeks ago, I wrote about renewing my old passport and the memories that it triggered.  I actually sent my application in on October 7th, and had my new passport on the 14th.  To say I was surprised would be an understatement. Stunned is probably a better word.

In the U.S., we have a process called Global Entry which helps speed you through Customs and Immigration when you reenter the country.  It’s very handy and I do appreciate the time savings and no long queues.  When I came back from Spain this year, I cleared C&I in less than 5 minutes.

Along with but also separate from Global Entry is TSA PreCheck.  TSA Pre as it’s called helps expedite the security process at all domestic airports and spares you the indignity of removing your shoes, belt and jacket.  You don’t have to remove your laptop and watch, etc. because you’re going through a metal detector instead of a scanner.  I’m in airports a lot and being without this after my TSA Pre expired was a pain.

After I received my new passport, I applied to renew my Global Entry which includes TSA Pre.  I was surprised that I had to schedule another interview which involves driving out to DFW and, the appointments are often well in the future.  My next surprise was that there was one appointment available on the 17th which I quickly snapped up.

Long story short, I was approved, I had my TSA Pre approved and, I received my Global Entry card on the 21st.  The U.S. Government does not have a good reputation for efficiency but damn! that was very efficient.  So, hats off to the State Department and Homeland Security.  I’m good for another five years.

So, why am I writing this?  Certainly not to sing the praises of these two departments.  No, looking at my brand new, stiff, clean and stampless passport reminds me of the possibilities.  Where will it take me? Who will I meet?  What experiences await me?

Some trips in the consideration phase now are France next year, maybe renting a boat on the Burgundy Canal or the Canal du Midi.  After that, in 2021, maybe a long overdue trip to South Africa to see Dawn and Nallie.  Somewhere along the line, maybe a long weekend in Montréal, who knows, anything is possible.

The possibilities are not because I have a new passport, it’s because I allow myself to dream about these possibilities and, I hope I never stop dreaming.

A Dialog with Santiago

For the last couple years, since completing the Camino Francés, I’ve been exploring spirituality and how it fits into the life of a non-believer, that search continues.

The search though rekindled my love of poetry and my attempt to write poetry, something that I’ve done off and on since High School.  I’m a reluctant poet who fears rejection, as most writers do I suppose.  The vast majority of my poems were completed and then discarded, something I now regret as it would have shown a progression of both ability (or lack thereof) but more importantly, of me as a person.

My blog has become an outlet for my poems, it seems safe and semi-secluded which helps me with my fear of rejection.

This poem, A Dialog with Santiago, while themed around the Camino is really about my search for and progression towards some sort of spiritual understanding.  I use Santiago as a foil but, I think I’m really facing a mirror and speaking to myself. 

Santiago is a useful friend, when I face difficulties, I talk to him and tell him that I will overcome the challenge.  I did this on my recent Camino Inglés on several occasions.  When I was climbing up a steep hill out of Pontedeume, it was an early morning wake me up from Santiago.  When Grace and I were walking in the driving rain, it was Santiago’s way of testing me.

With this brief introduction, I hope you enjoy.

A Dialog with Santiago    

Santiago: Why do you seek, what is your calling, how will you ever know? To come all this way and to give up so much in the end will there be nothing to show?

Me: My friend Santiago with so many questions I fear I have little to share, I come on a lark, a fanciful walk, and maybe to see how I fare.

S: I’ve heard it all, and I’m sure you believe but in this you must trust that I know. There’s always a call a reason for sure, a need we’re unable to show.

M: My old friend I assure you that today you’re mistaken, I come as a man with no cause. To enjoy the walk, to bask in the sun, I promise there’s no reason to pause.

S: For you Amigo we’ll talk I am sure as you tread down this ancient road. Some claim clarity they’re often quite sure and in the end there’s more to behold.

M: I know many seek answers and others the way while some have an ache in their soul. For me it is true, I ask nothing from you, my life has cost me no toll.

S: Far we’ve traveled since the day we first met, cross mountains and plains by and by, Amigo there’s room for more than one answer, the universe ends not at the sky.

M: My body aches and my mind’s so weary as I struggle but don’t understand, I’m confused you know, I’m always told, there’s one way, now take a stand.

S: Good sir can you answer you’ve walked all this way, Pilgrim or Traveler how do you say? Your heart is clear and worthy for sure so no matter to me but to you it just may.

M: Santiago my friend does it matter at all, aren’t we here on our journey all the same? I’m a human, a traveler in search of myself, any description defies a mere name.

S: We sit you and me beholding the sea at the end of the difficult Way, No questions this day, no more lessons from me but I’m curious what you have to say.

M: We’ve been through so much and shared a plenty, more questions await me I bet, Santiago you know you were right all along, and you knew it the moment we met.

S: Peer into the distance and accept what you see, the Universe is both infinite and petite. Celebrate the vastness and all things unknown when you do so your Way is complete. Be pure in your heart and know that you’re one but also a part of the many. A simple truth but hard to accept and maybe for some it’s uncanny. But, fear not your struggle and even embrace it, you’re not alone, it confounds all who attempt it.