Old Habits Hang ON

Habits Die Hard

Why do two men at 6:30 in the morning stand at a pedestrian crossing with no traffic and refuse to walk against the light; not for a few seconds but for a few minutes.  One man is Japanese and from a culture where such individuality is frowned upon; the other a man who lived in Japan recognized the fellow traveler as a person from Japan and was determined to to insult the culture of a Japanese pilgrim in Spain by moving forward.  Habits some good some not so are hard to break even when on a pilgrimage.  For the Japanese man the idea that in Spain he had to observe the same conventions that he learned in Japan; for the other man the same determination that he did not want to embarrass the Japanese man; or be judged by that same man to be less than honorable.  If both are on the Camino in Spain to experience new directions; to be open to new ways is it not time to leave old habits behind?  God answered the question when I turned to my left; getting impatient with the time delay and noticed a button that was to be pushed to change the signal from red to green.  On Camino God is pushing our buttons to find new ways and new life.  The same happens each day no matter where anyone is on their path.  We need to turn and notice!!!