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[Cyd Crouse]

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thanks to all who have participated in this list.  i
leave tomorrow to start my walk, starting in st jean
on the 17th.  today i am filled with nervousness - and
some self doubt -- but also an overwhelming desire to
take that first step.

one point of continued inspiration for me has come
from the words of paulo coelho.  in particular this
section from 'by the river piedra i sat down and wept'
rings true.  i hope you enjoy it:

----------begin quote--------
you have to take risks, he said.  we will only
understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the
unexpected to happen.
every day God gives us the sun -- and also one moment
in which we have the ability to change everything that
makes us unhappy.  every day, we try to pretend that
we haven't perceived that moment, that it doesn't
exist -- that today is the same as yesterday and will
be the same as tomorrow.  but if people really pay
attention to their everyday lives, they will discover
that magic moment.  it may arrive in the instant when
we are doing something mundane, like putting our
frontdoor key in the lock; it may lie hidden in the
quiet that follows the lunch hour or in the thousand
and one things that all seem the same to us.  But that
moment exists -- a moment when all the power of the
stars becomes a part of us and enables us to perform
miracles.
Joy is sometimes a blessing, but it is often a
conquest.  Our magic moment helps us to change and
sends us off in search of our dreams.  Yes, we are
going to suffer, we will have difficult times, and we
will experience many disappointments -- but all of
this is transitory; it leaves no permanent mark.  And
one day we will look back with pride and faith at the
journey we have taken.
Pitiful is the person who is afraid of taking risks.
Perhaps this person will never be disappointed or
disillusioned; perhaps she won't suffer the way people
do when they have a dream to follow.  But when that
person looks back -- and at some point everyone looks
back -- she will hear her heart saying, "what have you
done with the miracles that God planted in your days:
what have you done with the talents God bestowed on
you?  You buried yourself in a cave because you were
fearful of losing those talents.  so this is your
heritage:  the certainty that you wasted your life."
Pitiful are the people who must realize this.  Because
when they are finally able to believe in miracles,
their life's magic moments will have already passed
them by.
------end quote------

i wish you all the best in your journey.  may your
magic moments reach you.



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