Footsteps

Today I walked in the footsteps of Ceasar Augustus, Charlemagne and millions of other famous, infamous or unnamed persons, on Calzada Romana. It is classified as the most perfect extant of roman road left in Spain today. Over 20 centuries of footsteps...

I tried to think as one of "them". How did it feel to walk endlessly towards battle?? redemption?? for pay??  Did they see these endless expanses of blue and brown? The green life popping into view here and there?  Were the birds and bugs creating background music? Did the smell of earth fill their senses? Were the birds of prey swooping down from above? Did the storks walk the fields? 

It was those thoughts of the past that really brought me into the moment. "Being in the moment" is such a catch phrase, a prevalent philosophy of modern pilgrims. But who really lives in the moment? Even a pilgrim whose daily rituals have become so basic in human needs think of the next step, and the next meal, and the next bed. Humans are planners, thinkers of the future. This road would not exist without planning. My journey would never have begun without planning. We plan the next task at work, we plan the next activity in recreation, we plan for good things and we plan for bad. So when do we live in the moment? I believe it is only during the purest form of communication between people - conversation. When we listen and receive both verbal and physical responses with one another, we live the moment. Being a teacher, I've seen the decline in "listening skills". We turn on the TV, we turn on our smartphones, we turn up the radio... We give "one ear" to devices and one to our companions and rarely listen with intent to anything. So listen people! Get out, go outside and walk with someone. Leave the devices at home and enjoy the moments together. It is beautiful!