5:15 AM: I woke up to the sound of Chai, our outdoor cat, crying at my window. While I fed her, she whined for more cuddles. She doesn’t always understand words like “I need to get ready” or “pilgrimage”. It is very hard to resist her sweet black face, though, so I decided my pilgrimage would have to wait.

6:10 AM: I finally made it out of the house with my bag. I wasn’t sure how hungry I would get, so I packed: apples, boiled eggs, several meat sticks, five electrolyte packets, and some smoked gouda.

6:22 AM: I parked near White Duck Taco, said a prayer for the day, and began walking. This area of the trail is very familiar to me. I let my thoughts take a stroll. Since it was a pilgrimage, though, I tried to be intentional about where my thoughts went. I passed a mulberry tree, noting its limbs loaded with ripe, black berries. I let it move me to think about God’s abundance and where I am seeing that in my own life.

6:45 AM: My favorite bend on this part of the trail goes past the zoo on the right (smelling very earthy) and a creek on the left. The land has a natural hill and then a little bridge as you walk down.

I had planned to fill up notecards with people’s prayer requests, but ended up forgetting to write all of them down until the night before…and by then it was too late. Instead, I asked God to remind me of each person I had committed to praying for as I went.

7:30 AM: About four hours to go and I was rushing. I tried to listen more to my surroundings. Geese honked at me. Trees rustled in the breeze. This hour calmed me.

8:15 AM: I had planned for a lot of mental resistance for this prayer walk. What surprised me as I continued was the easy rhythm of it. Walk. Look around. Walk. Pray a line from Scripture. Pray for a friend. Keep walking.

9:00 AM: I began to experience some pain in my hips and my feet. I probably shouldn’t have tried doing this whole thing in barefoot shoes. I love using them for most things, but this time around my feet and legs both hurt. The pain intensified during this hour. I kept checking my watch, making me aware of how long the minutes felt.

I was also very aware of God’s presence during this time. The pain drove me into a deeper concentration.

Psalm 90 was my companion on this walk and this was the hour when I read it the most. I chose only the first several verses so that I could really focus as I prayed it.

Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to another.

Before the mountains were brought forth, or the earth and the world were made.

You are God from everlasting and world without end.

You turn man back to the dust; You say, “Return O children of men.”

For a thousand years in Your sight are as yesterday, even as a day that is past.

You scatter them as a night-watch that comes quickly to an end;

they are even as a dream and fade away.

I think if I do this again, I would like to set aside a fifteen minute period to sit and do lectio divina with the passage I’ve chosen. It was hard to concentrate with all of the bikers and other walkers passing me.

10:30 AM: I realized I was going to make it to my destination with some time to spare. This last hour felt a lot more relaxed, even though I was definitely still in pain. God kept reminding me of people to pray for and every biker who passed me was so very friendly. I also rescued a book of poetry which was lying by the side of the road. It looked like it needed a home.

11:22 AM: After five hours and ten miles of continuous walking, there is nothing like coming around the final bend and seeing your destination. In this case, it was Tandem, home to the greatest crêpes ever. I sat down on a park bench and could not stop smiling.

My friend Jessica met me and treated me to a blueberry creme crêpe with coffee. The only thing sweeter and more wonderful than the crepe was Jessica’s baby, who sat in my lap and smiled at me.

Jessica and I had the best conversation about prayer and pilgrimages. She asked me if I thought I would make this a discipline. I have noticed that having time set aside for a longer prayer walk has been really helpful and good, but hadn’t though of making it a monthly rhythm. I’m not sure I’ll do five hours every single time and I might need to invest in some more comfortable walking shoes. It’s something I’d like to try once a month, though.

1 PM: Jessica drove me back to my car. All three of were getting a bit sleepy. When I lay down to nap, I kept thinking about Jessica’s baby nodding off in the back seat, full of trust. The whole day, it felt as though God were reminding me how it feels to completely trust Him with every single worry, just like that baby.

The rest of the day was spent doing recovery things like showering, icing my hips, taking Tylenol, and watching the goslings outside my window. Every great adventure requires some rest afterwards.

I think one of my favorite things about this mini pilgrimage was that it had a very clear starting and ending point. In the absence of a holy site to travel to, it was good to have a place like Tandem to end up at for lunch. A part of me wishes that South Carolina was dotted with old wells or chapels so I could plan trips to them. But I am very creative, so I’ll make up my own pilgrimages. I look forward to sharing about them.

Another one of my favorite things was the direction I felt in praying for everyone. a lot of people had sent in requests and I was worried I wouldn’t remember everything without notecards. But after I got home I checked back through my messages and God had reminded me about all of them.

I took part of another Psalm with me and would like to leave it with you.

Because she has set her love upon Me, therefore I will deliver her;

I will lift her up, because she has known My name.

She shall call upon me, and I will hear her;

indeed, I am with her and bring her honor.

With long life I will satisfy her and show her my salvation.