I can’t believe the day is almost here! Two weeks from today, on April 18, 2017, I will fly to Paris, then take a train to St. Jean Pied de  Port to begin my pilgrimage. I have been conditioning physically since January, yet part of me is concerned about not yet being ready. My longest walk to date has been 19k, but I will be doing 25k per day, every day.  Sounds a little daunting. I think I have everything I will need, equipment wise, but need to amalgamate it all into my knapsack without going over my 20 lb limit. How many socks, bras and underwear will I really need is the pressing question of the day. Tomorrow it will be what medical supplies should I pack for blister care?  Rain gear, warm clothes and things to wear on a sunny spring day add to the challenge. Do I take the Crocodile Dundee hat that I am sporting in the photo above? One daughter tells me it is not exactly a “fashion forward” accessory, while the other daughter, fearing for her mother’s virtue, thinks it is a good idea to look as unattractive as possible while away. No worries there, as my hiker-to-shorts convertible “man pants” (none of the women hiking gear fit me) and hiking boots definitely fall on the unattractive end of the fashion spectrum. I am also taking an English/Spanish bible that I liberated from a hotel room during a recent trip to Costa Rica. My limited Spanish indicated it was “libro” which I translated as free, so I didn’t feel bad releasing it from its captivity in the nightstand next to my bed. I noted that it had incurred a little water damage (at least I hope it was water), so a replacement was in order. I say all this to justify to myself that I did not steal a bible, because that would probably be seen by some as a “bad” thing to do. Or perhaps I say this all to confess that perhaps I do feel just a little guilty. Oh well, I’m going on a pilgrimage, so there will be lots of time for contemplation, confession and perhaps even redemption!