On our second day of walking, I began to move rocks. Little stones on our path would call to me like magnets wanting to be inside my pockets…to be moved down the Camino in some way. I collect stones at home and put them on my altar (so does Sammy). Sometimes I carry them with me in a pouch throughout my day, meditate with them by my side or in my hands, and set them outside under the light of the full moon. All strange things, to some – but I like it (and so does Sammy lol).
In any case, stones have called me here, too. And what ends up happening is that I feel each stone emanating primarily feminine energy (and place in my left pants pocket) or vibrating more masculine energy (and place in my right side pocket). Of course, some stones are neither gender, and frankly all of them are just inventions of my own creative leanings. In any case, the collection of stones have a become an act of finding balance in my own walk – a yin and yang of stone gathering and placement.
I like the idea of moving rocks. I enjoy thinking about earth stones, hundreds if not thousands of years old, moving along El Camino with me.
So as I gather stones, I also release stones. Several kilometers from where I first put a stone in my pocket, I set a stone down in a new place. I think about sites of witness: an epic hillside, a cow pasture, an altar. The right place to set down a stone speaks to me, just as the stones themselves call to me to travel.
This is another little practice that has been woven into my walk.
Th collection and release of stones. The making of and contributing collective altars along El Camino. The balancing of yin and yang, masculine and feminine. The movement of rocks.
We are, after all, all living on a giant moving rock.
