Buen camino

I knew it had been a while since my last blog post, but I didn't realize it's been a month and a half (sorry, Liz). What's funny is that it will be at least another month and a half until I write my next one.

Last May, Theresa challenged Liz and I to walk-off in honor of “Get Fit, Don't Sit” Day, which is held the first Wednesday in May. The plan was the three of us would count our steps for one week. Although last year's competition fizzled out (rather shamefully), I decided to kick it up a notch this time around by walking across Spain.

OK. We're not doing a contest this year, but I am taking a leave of absence to walk the Camino de Santiago. Depending on how fast you walk, it takes about a month to finish, but I'm budgeting a little more time for unforeseen circumstances.

caminos-a-santiago.gif

(I'm going to be walking the yellow route)

I haven't planned the fine details of my trip yet, but I'll be walking about 6 hours every day—which is a little overwhelming, considering the longest amount of time I've walked in preparation for this trip is three hours (and that was one time). The first day is usually the hardest, because you have to go over the Pyrenees. Some people bike it, a few still travel on horseback, and others—like Justin Skeesuck—roll.

When Skeesuck was 16-years-old, a car accident triggered a progressive autoimmune disorder that paralyzed his arms, hands and legs, according to the NY Daily News. In 2012, he saw a TV program about the camino and wondered if he could do it in a wheelchair. Long story short: Yes, yes he could.

It's easy to tell ourselves we're too old or too busy to make a big change or do something we've always wanted to do, but that's just a cover for what we really are: too scared.

The idea of walking 500 miles can be paralyzing (no pun intended), but when you break it down, it's just one step, and then another.

¡Buen camino!

While I'm gone, you can reach Liz at ebeaulieu@hmenews.com or Theresa at tflaherty@hmenews.com with any mobility-related news.