Wednesday, February 1, 2012

End of the Road

Marianne reached the end of her earthly road in December. Her cancer ended her traveling and ultimately her life. It had been a good trip, with a good traveling companion, thirty-three years long.

The United Nations, UNESCO, publishes a list of world heritage sites, some famous, some obscure. I figured out that she and I have been to half of the world heritage sites in the US, and half of the ones in Mexico as well. A good trip indeed, one that we were very fortunate to be able to take together.

At this point, I don't know if I will continue to use this blog for my travels or not. Nor am I sure if I will travel in the same way that we have traveled in the past. For example, I do not expect to take any cruises by myself. But my travels will continue in some form, I am sure.

Life is, after all, a kind of journey. Sometimes life is described as a kind of pilgrimage, "Pilgrims Progress", or John Wayne referring to someone as "Pilgrim".

I have one big trip on tap for the fall of 2012, walking in the footsteps of 1000 years of pilgrims. My plan is to return to Europe, and walk another 200 miles or so, on the Camino a Santiago de Compostella, like I did in 2002. An appropriate trip to contemplate the next leg of the journey or pilgrimage of my life.

Please keep Marianne, I, and all our family, in your thoughts and prayers.

Richard