Being Human and being a pilgrim

Tue Jan 28 01:52:18 PST 2003

Hi Jeffrey: if I understand well this email is just going to get into your mailbox.

I have to say that it was comforting for me to read your email. I live in the everyday pain of having witnessed the complete chaos and disaster at the WTC on the 11 and 12th, but at the same time, I will be NEVER ABLE TO FORGET the Americans for the disappearances of 30.000 people in my country, including my ant and several friends of my family. The American intelligence was directly related to what happened in my country not just in Chile (by the way, Allende overthrowing was on 1973 but you have really a great amount of accurate information in all other respect). Today I was re-reading the reports of the Conadep and I knew that the Coca Cola establishment was involved with the "security forces" that used to torture and kill people in one of the detention camps, and they had direct knowledge of the case of 2 French nuns that were detained and then drop to the ocean from a airplane, just as it seem they did with my ant. I see that history is going to repeat itself one more t!
ime, especially now that more than 1400 American soldiers are working together with Argentinean military in Misiones (Argentina) What's coming is huge. Here, there, everywhere. Just to keep the right of Americans to drink coca cola and drive SUVs. Then they wonder why other people don't like them in Compostela. Is a shame that they do not ask the right questions to other and to themselves? They just make assumptions... everything is sooo clear for them, from the cradle to the grave....

Well anyway it was nice to see that someone can think in this group... and that this time it wasn't me who was threatened with being kicked out.

I'll leave my answer in this board tomorrow.

I agree with Becci and Jeffrey and John Davis in all what they have said.

I think that all this conversation IS VERY PERTAINING to the subject of walking the Camino. Again, El Camino de Santiago de Compostela is part of the Planet Hearth as much as the USA is (again, AMERICA IS A CONTINENT) Most of you who have already been there have mentioned that the Camino changed you deeply somehow. I don’t see any possibility for a “deep change” of any sort if the people don’t go with a open hearth and mind even TO TALK WITH OTHER PILGRIMS OF POLITICS or at least, to HEAR without being thinking what to say as soon as the other person finished. .

Talking about politics  doesn’t mean anything else but talking about the current situation of the world that affects all of us. How can you expect pilgrims and residents to open their hearts and mind to you if you are already telling them what they are allowed to say and what there are not IN THEIR OWN COUNTRIES AND HOUSES???? That’ s exactly the attitude I meant people who hasn’t been born in the USA (including me) don’t like and cannot trust. I am an adult and an adult with FREE WILL. That menas that I don’t need  anybody to tell me when I can express what I think is pertaining to certain situation. A young adult, but who has witnessed already things that most of you have just heard on the news. I was in the world trade center the 12th of September, helping in the rescue (actually helping the surgeons that worked with the firemen and organizing the triages) and I can understand better than many what it really was like. I felt very sorry for all the human being that died th!
at day. As much as I feel sorry now for the human being that are being held illegally IN DETENTIONS CENTERS ALL OVER THE USA and for the 18.250 children that starve to death every day in my country. Yes, that is more than 6 times the amount of people that died in the WTC.  And I can understand better than many what is like to have disappeared people in the families, victims of extreme violence, as one of my aunts was kidnapped and tortured and killed by the military government in Argentina during the 70’  that, -once more- was founded by the CIA (and if anybody has any doubt about it, can check some of the documents now declassified by the USA government) and performed by personnel trained by USA especial forces in the torture techniques.

You would be surprised to know the role that companies like Coca Cola played at that time there (including the complete knowledge and hiding of the torture and killing of 2 French nuns that were trying to help Mothers of the disappeared to rescue their children).

I know it is difficult to hear about theses things.  But every time I try to talk to people they NEVER FIND IT the right moment or place to do so. I am wondering when do Americans feel it is the right moment and time to debate (and do something with respect to) all this.

Why do some pilgrims like myself  have to carry these heavy burdens my entire life while others prefer keeping the Camino the Santiago absolutely clean and clear of this stuff?  Who is anybody here to decide what “belong to the Camino and what doesn’t? I was raised in the tradition of Patron Santiago. As I explained before, he is the Saint “Patrono” of my city, Mendoza. We also celebrate his day on July the 25th. And it is such and important festivity -it is a sacred holiday- that we do not go to school or work that day. And it is curious, but the pain and politics that many of you want to keep out from this board (which is ok if the owner of the board decides so) and the Camino (which is NOT OK at any rate) are exactly the reasons why many people decided to walk in pilgrimage in the past!!! Pain and reflection, thinking and changing deeply are the REAL THINGS THAN BELONG TO THE CAMINO. Again, it is not (or at least shouldn’t just be that) a touristy trip. And if it is for s!
ome of you, that’s fine with me, a long as you don’t expect ME to meet your expectations. Don’t expect everybody you come across in your way to avoid the subject that bothers you so much mainly taking into consideration that this is BOTHERING THEM SO MUCH TOO.  As many people go there to think about which is the real mission in their lives and learn from others, or in “causa pietatis”, maybe to ask for forgiveness for their responsibility in the miseries of the world (don’t worry, I am not saying Americans should do it as well)  it is very likely that they talk about “deep” and no always so happy or entertaining things. No everything has to “be fun”.

When I wrote last time, it was to make this point clear: that independently from what WE WANT  to find in the Camino, there will be things that we would have preferred not to talk about , not to see… if you are the kind of person that needs to have everything under control, even in your vacations in a foreign country which language and habits you do not know or understand well, my best and better intentioned advise would be: don’t go. If something I have learned in my life (specially after September 11th, because I could predict the Argentinean crises when Memem was re-elected and I could predict that something catastrophic c would occur when Bush was elected but didn’t know what exactly) , that it doesn’t matter what obsessive and organize I am, EVERYTHING CAN BE FUCKED UP IN A QUESTION OF SECONDS as result of circumstances or other peoples ill  will .

As if it weren’t enough all this, this year I found out that probably I’ll be completely blind at the time of my 40th birthday, having seen many awful things and no much beauty yet. And even if I weren’t loosing my sigh, would it be any nature, any beauty to appreciate if the people in which names things are being conjured do not take responsibility for this odds, if they NEVER find the right moment and place to do AT LEAST DISCUSS ?

I do not have experience in online mediation, but a few years of experience in the field of clinical psychology and coordinating groups of discussion that worked in particularly difficult issues have taught me  that the tensions you don’t resolve talking or being pro-active toward the consecution of real solutions (as opposed to just hiding or denying something that exists) are the only ways of healing anything.

Omnipotence and denial are the 2 most basic and immature defense mechanisms ever, used mainly by children and schyzofrenic people who have not been stabilized…. But in the last 2 years I have witnessed with sadness and terror how they can also become massive mechanisms of defense used by a whole country. I know what they can operate in individuals. I know how they can lead them to the total destruction of their lives and even to physical annihilation. The thoughts of what they can do to a nation or the whole planet are frightening.

If you are sincere when you say you are interested in sharing with other pilgrims on your way and in learning and transmitting knowledge and love and comforting those that need you, then, you should consider that I am also a pilgrim, and discussing these things and no being still forced to hide them is what really helps.

I think it was Ann who suggested to use good titles to announce what the posting are about and I don’t see why it should be a problem for anybody who doesn’t wasn’t to read about something just to skip it, and let the rest of us take part of a preparation for the trip that is not just material or based upon “bright and happy and fun things”  Using clear titles may prevent those who don’t want to be bothered to avoid certain topics, while giving us (and the new pilgrims arriving ) the chance to share a little more.

As for the people leaving the board, I have just seen one leaving in the last 7 days, and we don’t even know for sure this discussion was the reason. I have seen many people leaving before, just because they have gotten the info they were looking for and they didn’t want to have their mail- box overloaded or for whatever reason.

I feel personally very rewarding this conversation and it has been useful for me to know that, as expected, there are some pilgrims with whom I may have many things in common, who may understand easily than most people out there, the deep motives for my pilgrimage and what I am looking for.  It doesn’t matter if I never meet them, it is good to know they exist and are also seeking for a way out, for a clearer path.

I haven’t forgotten there was a time without Television and cell-phones and cars and chat rooms and cyber sex, and Coca-Cola, when you could drink directly from the streams (oh yeah I did when I was a child!) and people came together, face to face, to share the simplest things of life, to talk about and share their views of the future, to sing songs of the past, to grow in solidarity and plan for the well being of the whole community, not a few individuals,  to receive and give support and love to each other. Those where the priorities. I go to the Camino to rescue as much as I can of the Old Ways.

<tr>
<td align="center"><img src="http://www.basuranuclear.org.ar/img/varios/banner.gif" width="122" height="101"></td>
</tr>

---------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.oakapple.net/pipermail/gocamino/attachments/20030128/908f3333/attachment.htm