[Camino Poem No. 36] The Lord's Prayer

This is the 36th of 42 posts about the poems which carried me along the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Aug-Sep 2016. On this, the 36th day, I walked 34km from Melide to Pedrouzo.

The camino was still offering me ample opportunity for reflection. I spent the morning walking with a father who told me how he enjoys connecting with his teenage son. Later, I talked with a man who taught philosophy in a secondary school.

I was also, after days of walking in company, craving the stillness of being alone. Santiago was now only one day away, and I did not feel ready to finish.

Sitting in a cafe by a busy road, with lorries rumbling past at regular intervals, the father chose the poem for the day.

The Lord's Prayer (An Alternative Translation)

Oh heavenly source of all radiance. Soften the ground of our being and carve out a space within us where your Presence can abide. Fill us with your creativity so that we may be empowered to bear the fruit of your mission. Let each of our actions bear fruit in accordance with our desire. Endow us with the wisdom to produce and share what each being needs to grow and flourish. Untie the tangled threads of destiny that bind us as we release others from the entanglement of past mistakes. Protect us from being seduced by that which would divert us from our true purpose, but illuminate the redemptive opportunities of each passing moment. For you are the ground and the fruitful vision, the creative power and fulfillment, as all is gathered and made whole once again.