Wed May 29, 2019 @ 22:12

One month to go!

Let me share a little about my mom and I.

I am the oldest of 6 and we have been a camping and hiking family as long as I can remember. My mom was one of the first women I personally knew who hiked solo. In fact, before I went and decided to hike the Pacific Crest Trail in Washington State solo, my sister and I used to give my mom a bad time for doing it!

My mom lives about 8 blocks from me and has for 20 years (this year). As a single parent for most of those years, she has always been there for me. She visits regularly, weeds my yard because I am too busy hiking and makes sure I remember to recycle properly.

In 2008 or so, I began my foray into backpacking with women from my church, most of them in their 50s and 60s. Years and miles behind them, they had so much experience to share. Because of them and their encouragement, I was soon backpacking solo and heading off on long distance adventures.

In 2015, I took my mom on her first backpacking trip (picture above in Olympic NP) with some other ladies from church. We had so much fun! She had borrowed a HUGE pack from my sister that was almost as big as her and soon after my siblings and I chipped in to buy her her own pack.

I mentioned in an earlier post about it being 2018 that we first started talking about doing a Camino together but thinking back now it was probably 2016 when I was laid off from work. I remember going with her to a talk in Seattle about the Camino Frances that got us thinking about when we might go to walk it ourselves. I ended up going back to work sooner than anticipated so the trip was delayed.

My mom is retired and I work 30 hours a week in a school (read teacher's schedule) that is perfect for a hiking lifestyle. I will be 49 this year and she is a young 72. In addition to hiking, she is also the reason I am involved in trail work with the PCTA and WTA. She has been maintaining trails for as long as I can remember! This last summer I got to help replace the monument at the terminus of the Pacific Crest Trail on the Canadian border which was an AMAZING experience.

There are many reasons I am looking forward to this trek in addition to visiting Spain and doing it with my mom. Aside from hiking, we are both looking forward to the history and culture. All those centuries old churches and artwork. My mom was a art history major in college and I can just imagine how exciting it will be to see historic works in person. We will be making time for museums like the Prado in Madrid, too!

But the most important reason is relational. If you are like me and have a mom that is working on those "Golden Years", you know that as a daughter (and maybe as a son, too), there is something about seeing your mom age that changes how you see yourself, too. A jumbled mix of fierce love, respect, fear and frustration. The beginning of a role reversal. A shift in the universe.

I will admit, I am not always as patient with my mom as I should be. It is hard to see someone who has always been your rock begin to falter in unwelcome ways. Forgetfulness, a slower pace and an ever-so-slight frailness are more than tiny irritations but reminders that we won't have our parents forever. And maybe that we, too, are not immortal.

Not only am I looking forward to making memories of a lifetime with my mom in Spain on the Camino, I await our trip together as a way to spend time within our relationship. For me to be more patient and enjoy a slower pace. An opportunity to appreciate all there is to appreciate. To connect with my mom in a more meaningful way doing something we both love to do.