lessons

On the importance of doing your work

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The most important lessons in life you learnt as a child. One of those lessons was do your homework, do your work. There is no substitute. You might be able to get away without doing your homework once in a while. But if you want results, you have to do the work, put in the hours.

Last Spring, we lost the soccer game against our eternal foe, Miami’s St. John Vianney 3-4. This year we put in the work week after week. We practiced with dedication and enthusiasm, we even organized a scrimmage against a local team. We put in the work. The team was diligent and conscientious about practicing, not easy when you have a ridiculous grad-school workload, but they did it.

The result?

With only a few minutes to warm up and settle in after our drive to Miami (the referee, hired at the last minute had things to do, come on, this is Miami), our players -minus one of our forwards who suffered an accident travelling down (he is fine, just a sore neck)- jumped on to the turf field.

We won 0-6. Victory is sweet, revenge even better!

Congratulations to the team, Assistant Coach Josh, the faculty and staff that made the game possible, as well to our phenomenal photographer Dylan McKay!

More lessons from The Camino

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A good spot for a chilly dip and some yoga
Prayer -however you do it – is great on the Camino
Cue Bob Marley song
Tru dat
Good advice
Lots of ice cold streams to dip in after a hot day
A few quick dips in an ice cold stream
Quiet mornings are great for meditating
Stands along the Camino make great juices and smoothies!!

Last year I wrote some notes and advice for pilgrims. Here are some more picked up from round II:

Take care of your whole body, not just your feet. Last year I was hyper focused on my feet, to the point where I disregarded the rest of my body. This year I paid much more attention:

  1. Yoga: I tried to do yoga most evenings. I looked for a patch of grass and then free styled or used the Down Dog app on my phone. In Herrerias I even found a yoga class taught by Esther, a wonderful Dutch girl. It was in a clearing in some trees with a stream running by. It was by far the best yoga lesson I have ever had!! The stretching is wonderful and resets the body.
  2. Ice baths or equivalent: I was lucky to find ice-cold rivers and streams to dip in after my walks. This is critical to bring down whole body inflammation after all day hiking. I found this deeply restorative as well as refreshing. In worse case, a cold shower will also help bring down any possible inflammation.
  3. Liquids, liquids, liquids (preferably not alcoholic). I did not do a bad job on this last year, but this year I made sure to crank it up! Make sure that you keep a solid supply of water, especially if doing the Camino in the summer. I had a stretch one afternoon where I could not find an albergue, it was very hot and I was tempted to not fill my bottle. I’m glad I did, as it took a while to get to the next water source.

Besides your body, listen to your soul. The early morning hours are usually quiet and mostly without people. This is a perfect time to meditate. I use an old rosary to help me match my breath with my pace and a mantra. One morning I managed a solid 45 minutes, a record of conscious meditation for me. It was one of the most cleansing and spiritual experiences I have ever had.

But the best lesson to share is to start walking.