Ready or not!

So today is Monday, August 19th and I leave this Friday, August 23rd for St Jean Pied de Port in France, arriving Saturday night in time to get some sleep before I start my Pilgrimage from France to Spain on what is known as the Camino de Santiago. Here are a few facts about me -this is not a religious quest, this is simply a Pilgrimage of a Single Mom, who has a deep seated need to make a difference and see the world. I hope that by trying to walk nearly 500 miles by myself (OK so I expect there will be other Pilgrims :) ) in a few weeks and seeing a part of the world for me not yet explored, I will find the time to really reflect on my now what for the next 20 years or more. I will arrive back home in Boulder, CO (well this is the plan at this time) on Saturday evening September 14th. I will attempt to blog, bear with me if there are some gaps in my posts...but for all of you who have asked me to blog...well in short, you did ask for it! My pack weighs 25# before adding my H2O Bottles...I have attempted over the past few months to do 20+mile walks with the damn thing and often times wondered, could I really do this again tomorrow? I looked at the option of 'slack packin' which allows a person to walk while a company carries your pack forward; however discovered this service is geared towards the rich and famous, of which I am currently neither. Therefore, I will schlep 'Pete' my pack with me, hoping to not leave him somewhere along the trail, discarded simply from exhaustion. (Pete came by the name - from the fact that I put things in, took things out, put things in, took things out...Pete just seemed to sum up this manic behavior of weighing things in ounces and deciding something weighing 4oz was too much and had to go...). I had hoped to unplug for most of this quest, but due to the overwhelming need for people to track my every move - snort! I will attempt to blog...hang in there, the ride will be bumpy...but know I may not have blogged for a few days, simply due the fact I could not raise my arms to type. Big Hugs to all of you! Here is to the discover of the 'now what' we all face as we look over the horizon and find more is behind us than ahead of us and we must determine how to make it truly exquisite!