Sometimes the light’s all shinin’ on me,
Other times I can barely see
Lately it occurs to me what a long, strange trip it’s been

The Grateful Dead

I will preface this note with the fact that I did NOT lose anything.

That said, I am finally in possession of all the symbols you gave me for my walk on the Way. For almost a year I turned the house upside down trying to locate them, praying my absent-mindedness put them somewhere super safe. My worst fear was that I lost them; I’m not sure how that would have happened, but I have had two passports go missing in my lifetime…I was so panicked that I couldn’t even think about it anymore.

My last hope was the Cape. I had brought them down last summer thinking everyone would be together. I could have sworn I brought them home…

The day before we were leaving for the Cape, one of the members of my women’s group was leaving after 4 years. She brought each of us a gift to say thank you. She gave me mine last. It was the first rosary she had made for a non-profit called “Build The Faith” which raises money to build churches in impoverished areas of Latin America. I was so moved. She said she chose it for me because she was touched by my walk on the Way, and that I seem to have a deep hope for people. I never thought that about myself, but it was nice to know someone thinks it.

I knew after she shared her gift and story that I would find the symbols. It all seemed so coincidental that she gave me a rosary (thank you, Dad) that had a Mary medallion (thank you, Mom) and referenced my trip. I decided to hang on to that deep hope.

The symbols were on my nightstand.

I’m not sure why I prolonged my anxiety and didn’t just take a trip down to look (see “procrastination” in earlier blog). I guess I wasn’t sure what I would do if they weren’t here. Most of the items are pretty large so I can see them at first glance. I dug around to make sure the Mary medallion was there. The thought of losing it made me sick.

Now, the story gets a little funkier and intertwined (see “Invisible Thread”). I was invited to participate in a “21 Day Abundance Meditation Challenge” that involves an inspirational message and some reflection tasks. I like inspirational stuff, and I like writing. I thought it would be fun. I did not anticipate how challenging some of the reflections would be.

On the day that I recovered the symbols, the task for the day involved asking our mothers a few questions (which I did and it is up to Mom to share them and her answers). I really couldn’t believe how interconnected everything seemed to be. The Way, the missing symbols, the gifted rosary, the medallions, the day’s task…

My final word’s to mom in the email I sent her- “I hope you enjoyed this story! I may post it on my blog, but of course, you needed to be the first to hear the story.”

And so you might think that this is where it ends. Nope. It gets better! One of the tasks was to start and moderate our own Abundance Challenge. I decided to share this story with the participants today. It certainly felt very abundant. And because I was feeling inspired, I decided to include my blog address. I haven’t looked at my posts in a loooooong time. Like a treasure box once it’s opened, I lost a few hours rereading all the posts- appreciating the significance of the symbols (and you) once again.

My very last post is entitled “Keep It Simple.”

It was written on July 10, 2019. One year ago today.

Buen Camino!