I’ve been watching a show on Amazon Prime called ‘3 Caminos’ about 5 strangers who become friends while walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain. What used to be a pilgrimage of 800 kms in ancient times to the tomb of St. James, today attracts people from across the world to walk either in its entirety or to cover a portion of it.
A few years ago when I was planning my trip to Spain, this was something I really wanted to do for a week, which would of course only be about 1/5th of the actual walk. As exciting as it seemed, I didn’t end up doing it because I was nervous about being in a new country and walking the distance by myself.
The past year has been difficult for most of us in so many ways. While I really have nothing to complain about having work that I love, family and friends around me and all the comforts that I could want, I go through days feeling incredibly restless for adventure, for seeing places and for meeting new people.
I put the show on pause so I could write the following lines and share them with you in poetry form. A form that I’ve rarely written in.
An overwhelming feeling went thru my heart
For something new, for an interesting start
To create a story and make a new friend
The beginning of something and memories to tend
An adventure for me to come across and explore
In a place I’ve never gone, never been to before
I want to make a new friend
Who laughs easily or even drops a tear
Unafraid to follow his heart
Goes thru life without a fear
I want to make a new friend
In a bar that I happen to find
Exchanging stories over a beer
Filled with wealth of a different kind
In a place that I don’t live in
In a place I only have in my mind
I want to make a new friend
Sing songs at a karaoke
Or silently listen to the sounds of the sea
I want to make a new friend
With someone who is most unlike me
Leading a life that I’ve never known
In a place that I don’t live in
In a place I’d like to be shown
This isn’t the life I choose to know
The smile behind the mask
We’re afraid to show
You may be happy within your home
With people you love
And people you’ve known
But I need to make a new friend
A friend I’ve never met before
In a place that I don’t live in
In a place that I so wish to go
