Hearing the Camino's Call: Stories of Inspiration and Celebration from Women over 50 walking the Camino de Santiago

Hearing the Camino's Call: Stories of Inspiration and Celebration from Women over 50 walking the Camino de Santiago by WOACA the Camino Community. paperback edition. ISBN: 9781738201013.

What is it like to be a woman over 50 and hear the call of an ancient pilgrimage that asks you to leave home, friends and family and set off, often alone, to walk for days or weeks in an unknown country…and say “yes”? Hearing the Call of the Camino is a collection of 58 stories from Women of a Certain Age (known as WOACAs) who heard the call, screwed up their courage and answered “yes. Some of these women have not walked the Camino yet and write about their fears and hopes for their pilgrimage. Others write while on their journey, allowing us to share in their most profound moments of discovery, challenge and celebration. Still others write of what it is like to return to their homes and lives after their Camino and integrate the lessons learned on faraway paths. These women are all part of a community of Women over 50 (Woaca the Camino), who were asked to submit any part of their Camino experience they wished, with one stipulation...whatever they wrote, they were asked to write from the heart. What came out was a collection of great power from a population that often experiences a subtle and sometimes overt invisibility in society. Their voices are reclaimed in this book and their stories of triumphs, injuries, beauty, magic and choices are told with humour and insight. From Kari’s “blisters underneath blisters” and resolve to “walk, eat, sleep and repeat” to Cari’s powerful decision to throw “my anger at cancer” into the ocean at the end of her Camino to Lynda’s walk with a black eye after falling on the path, to the many tales of Camino angels, each story is more powerful than the next. The women in this book walk with themselves in a way that is sometimes long overdue. Over and over again, the Camino provides them with what is sometimes not asked for, but is always needed. After reading Hearing the Camino’s Call, Carolyn Gillespie, author of the bestselling memoir: Pilgrim: Finding a New Way on the Camino de Santiago, wrote: “The beautiful voices of this book express what is, to me, an essential Camino mystery: that it is possible to be powerfully engaged, active and on track whilst at the same time relinquishing control and opening oneself to the ‘whatevers’ of the day.” This book is a gift from and to women who hear the call to step into the unknown, to embrace their love of self and their trust in their power and courage in all areas of life. It is a reminder that you can believe in yourself! The women who contributed to Hearing the Call of the Camino are proud that part of the proceeds will go to supporting other women’s Caminos through the Camino Love Fund. For more information on the Camino Love Fund, go to caminolovefund.com Buen Camino!