I was really hoping to start this post with a bit of a philosophical reflection along the lines of “sometimes, when life seems dark, the clouds can part and hope can peek through and grief is a bit like that.” I was doing the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb today to Continue Reading
Karen P
Bereaved Mother’s Day
I remember a bereaved mother one year, telling me about leaving a shopping centre in tears in the lead up to Mother’s Day. She had walked past a shop and in the window was a giant poster with the words, “All I want for Mother’s Day is a hug from Continue Reading
21… and pregnant.
Last year, on Bree’s anniversary, I was joined by a couple of dear friends and I did something very different. We went out to a number of cocktail bars in Melbourne, and with photos of our beautiful children sitting framed on the table in each place, we all shared a Continue Reading
Being a real hiker… for two seconds!
Due to a necessary element of trying to find a property to purchase as my first home, which meant every spare moment trudging around property inspections, and then facing Bree’s anniversary, I hadn’t been on a hike for over six weeks. Who would have ever thought I would be agitated Continue Reading
Those Crazy Morning People…
Of which, I am not one. I am not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination, so I must have had rocks in my head to sign up for a sunrise hike. Here was my thinking, (it seemed logical at the time). I would be needing to get Continue Reading
The Journey to St Jean Pied de Port
It’s time to go. All the talking about it, shopping for it and kinda training for it is done and now it comes to the doing. To make the journey a little easier, I treated myself to Business Class. (Thanks to my lovely Ladybird Lynda for planting that seed last Continue Reading
St Jean Pied de Port to Orisson
I don’t know whether it was tiredness or fear, but when I could hear everyone getting ready at some ungodly hour and talking with excitement, I stayed hidden in my room. It was relief that when I came down, most people had left, giving me time to process where I Continue Reading
I climbed the mountain!
Orisson to Roncesvalles – 17.4kms Surprisingly, apart from a little overnight mishap, I slept amazingly well. At some unknown hour, I woke up needing to go to the toilet and carefully climbed down my bunk to try and avoid waking my bunk mate or anyone else in the room. That Continue Reading
The Camino Broke Me
Roncesvalles to Urdaniz – 26kms I was so terrified of the trek over the Pyrenees, but that was a piece of cake compared to this stretch. This day broke me. I had a rough night’s sleep with a bad tickle in my throat and despite being awake at 5:30am, I Continue Reading
Being Put Back Together
Urdaniz to Pamplona – 18kms After my wonderful pep talks from everyone, I got up in the morning with only a couple of hours sleep, pulled on my big girl pants and headed off with determination. This lasted all of 2kms. My legs felt more and more like cement and Continue Reading