A walk full of encounters

“I walked alone for five days in a row and on the sixth day I was accompanied by my son and my love.” The walk of pilgrim Avelijn Waardenburg (pilgrim 3954) was enriched with special encounters with people with whom she spent the night: Annet in Groesbeek, Ryon in Mook, Coen and Ceciel in Gasselt, Conny in Wijchen and with Raoul and Gertie in Winssen. Each and every one of them is a place to stay that she would wholeheartedly recommend to others. Read her story herel:

It is an experience to cherish: having spent whole days alone on foot in the natural beauty, aware of one’s own thoughts, feelings and body. With peace and space for mourning. It was a beautiful trip.

Annet not only literally offers a large private space, but also lets you very free and go about your business. Full of confidence as she announced that she would next morning I would leave earlier than I did and that I could safely get the key through could throw the bus. She also offered a beautiful moment of reflection on a wish or message that you could write on a ribbon, which you then attached to a branch of the tree next to the stable. ‘Alles sal reg kom’, the reassuring Words that my father often spoke, I let flutter in the wind.

Ryon, a seasoned pilgrim, was all about the close contact. During We almost forgot talking after arrival and while enjoying a cup of tea the time… Freshening up, cooking and eating together was still there, but only later on the evening of. Long and in-depth conversations that we also had at breakfast as well as carried out on their own. Ryon then brought me back on the route, fed with Inspiring ideas for future pilgrimages.

Good care

With Coen and Ceciel I felt more like a child for the first time on my trip, thanks to the parental care and good care of the couple. At Grave I would get on a bus that would take me to Gasselt, two villages away. I walked the longest distance of my pilgrimage that day and the view of the beautiful medieval Grave made me long for the last meters I would cover on foot.

Once I crossed the Graafse bridge, however, I heard the church bells strike one too many times… Six o’clock, the last bus had already left. So first I had a hot meal to regain my strength, before I would walk on to Gasselt.
Bravely I started this last part of the day, even though it started to rain and at a certain point I wasn’t so sure if I was walking well… At that moment, a man pulled up his car next to me, opened the window and asked, “Are you Avelijn?” I couldn’t believe my luck and Coen even apologized that he hadn’t been able to find me earlier, after his wife Ceciel had sent him out to pick me up when it started raining so hard… He had started looking at random, very warmly!

Conny also came to meet me. Under the guise that she also likes walking and has also walked the WoW, she likes to offer other pilgrims a place to stay. And she does so with verve: in an incredibly well-kept and hospitable house, she welcomed and spoiled me with tea and an orange tompouce during an open and poignant conversation on the balcony. The next morning, after an extensive breakfast and with a packed lunch in the backpack, she waved me goodbye cheerfully and friendly.

Reunification

Finally, I visited Bed and Breakfast Maas en Waal. I found the address after some wanderings through Winssen and a heavy rain shower. Still, my sopping shoes, muscle pain, wet clothes and soaked route booklet were forgotten in one fell swoop when I arrived at Raoul and Gertie’s place. Like a true host, Raoul immediately took the wet footwear from me and the reunion with my son and love were like an oasis in the desert, but then they were really there, I was not dreaming. What a great moment to hold them in my arms again! We didn’t leave the room until the next morning. This was possible thanks to the luxury of dinner and breakfast that was brought to our own room. A large plate of pasta: an excellent estimate of where a tired hiker stands.

Bird rings

In the picture the lace with which I walked from Nijmegen over Berg and through Dal. Via the German Reichswald, about which I – but perhaps especially my boyfriend and my mother – was not entirely at ease beforehand. Crossing the forest alone didn’t seem entirely responsible, but modest precautions (with a spray can of hairspray as a kind of pepper spray in my pocket and my phone on for this one day and within reach) took away the anxiety. This part of the trip also turned out to be no problem (for a woman alone).

I continued my way through the land of Maas and Waal back to Nijmegen Go back. With each of the eleven congregations I visited, there was a bird ring added to the lace I wore as a bracelet. My father(s love for birds) felt familiar close. With the collection of the bird rings, he on my wrist with me.

On the way home (with several trains and replacement bus transport) I lost my phone on the last train. After a week of being on the road without a phone of my own free will, I was unwillingly without a phone for some time afterwards. All in all, I see it as an exercise in living without a mobile device and fortunately the lost photos and memories I stored in my phone during my walk have been preserved in my own memory.

Avelijn Waardenburg from Rotterdam (pilgrim 3954)