Awhile back my husband and I spent some vacation time together and decided to revisit a glorious view which had previously eluded us due to clouds rolling in as we arrived. Yes, it was that high up.
My memory sadly, is not what it used to be, if it ever was much to start with. Needless to say, I was getting a wee bit frustrated as we just kept driving and not arriving at our destination. Mark must have said more than twenty times, “I know it is somewhere up the road.”
After the first ten times I was still hopeful, after fifteen I was doubtful, by the twentieth mention I had given up. Frankly I didn’t care anymore what was up the road and wanted to head to lunch. Yet he persisted like a hunter stalking his prey. One might point out here a fundamental difference between the male and female species; we women, (my apologies for the generalization), only care so long in matters not pertaining to children, bargain hunting, and chocolate. I am not suggesting we are shallow; rather it is a known fact that our depths have never been fully explored, and our mystery indefinable.
When we at last came upon our destination, it was a sight to behold and was well worth the wait; God’s creative genius lay before us in all its splendor and majesty. We experienced an “aesthetic arrest” as Fr Barron puts it. “In the presence of real beauty our minds go still.” I couldn’t snap enough pictures and was disappointed when I could not capture the magnificence surrounding me.
We were invited last week to view an early preview of the upcoming movie by Emilio Esteves that stars his father Martin Sheen titled, The Way. It is a beautifully told story about a father/son relationship and takes place on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela (The way of St James). This “collection of old pilgrimage routes” can be found throughout Europe. For over 1000 years, pilgrims have walked along the Camino.
The story is about relationship and transformation. Emilio Esteves uses the Wizard of Oz story line to assemble an unlikely troop of pilgrims along the Camino. The character played by Martin Sheen has gone to France to claim the body of his son, who was unexpectedly killed early into his trek. I found the story engaging and the cinematography heartwarming as they captured the landscape, pilgrims, and prudently included statues of the Virgin along the way. I found myself drawn into the pilgrimage as the story unfolded. Cleverly used wit and humor were inserted in just the right places. One aspect however, was how Tom, (Sheen’s character), would leave remnants of his sons’ ashes along the route. While it added intrigue to the story, I found it hard to agree with as a Catholic who desires to remain faithful to the teaching of the Church on matters involving human remains. I would have found the story every bit as poignant even if he simply walked the Camino never disturbing his sons’ remains.
The movie comes out in theaters nationwide on October seventh. It is worth going to see, and pondering long after in reference to our own lives and relationships.
One phrase that captivated me was what Daniel said to his father as they drove to the airport, “You don’t choose a life dad, you live one.” Many of us are on the road of our life journey, and we know that “somewhere up the road” we will find happiness, wholeness, rest. We sometimes tend to focus so exclusively on the destination that we miss all the good stuff in between.
Life is the journey. Who we meet along the way, who we impact and whom we let impact us is part and parcel of the experience. We must sit down at times and rest inhaling the exquisite beauty both human and natural that surrounds us. If our sights are too finely focused, it makes everything in our peripheral a blur.
Life is too short, and we are way too busy for own good. Somewhere up the road is heaven, but let’s make sure we don’t miss all the angels along the way.
