“Someday, with your help…. maybe, just maybe ... we can be bigger than K-mart!”

  

 

Across my almost 40-year career, I have seen quite a few changes in business, industries and technology.  In college, my first computer experience was in an era pre-PC where we used punch cards to “write” out commands for programs to run on a mainframe computer in a city hundreds of miles away… transmitted by analog phones in a cradle.  Equally, I have had the chance to meet, work with, and call on a wide variety of business luminaries across the decades and the quote that is the title of this essay comes from the one and only Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart.

 

It was 1986 and I was working as a Marketing Assistant for Kimberly Clark.  Based at HQ in Neenah Wisconsin, I had the chance to work with a wide variety of the senior execs at KC during those days and was working directly for one of my personal mentors, Bruce Paynter.     Bruce passed away from ALS in 2009, and I have written a number of essays about Bruce, and they are listed in the archive to the left of the home page for this blog.  Take a few minutes and read about the lessons I learned from him over the years.

 

Getting back to the mid-80’s and my experience with Sam Walton.  I was part of a team of KC managers and execs (led by Ralph Buckingham, the bigger than life President of sales for KC) who went down to Bentonville Arkansas to meet with this relatively small southern retailer… Walmart.  Now by then, Walmart had over 800 discount stores (over 10,000 total stores today) and had not yet opened its first supercenter.  The original discount store was a small discount department store that sold no food, produce, dairy, or traditional grocery items and offered a very limited selection of Kimberly Clark products.  A regional customer for KC for sure, but not in the top 10 list of national accounts (and probably not top 20 either!!)  Regardless of its size, and seemingly insignificant prowess, we went down to Bentonville for my first ever “top-to top” customer meetings.

 

While I don’t remember too many of the meetings and all the topics covered, the final conversation led by Sam Walton himself is one that will never be forgotten.  He and his team walked us through their future plans to build a brand-new store concept… the Walmart Supercenter. (the first Supercenter was opened in Missouri in 1987) He described it as two stores in one… a discount store on one side and a grocery store on the other… both sides fueled by the  same “everyday low prices” consumer promise.   While an interesting topic, it all seemed pretty fanciful and hard to believe.  Sam Walton finished his pitch by asking KC, just like he was personally asking a number of other prominent CPG companies (P&G, Kraft, General Mills, Coke, Nabisco, to name a few) to put members of THEIR team in Bentonville to work directly with the Walmart team…. so “someday with your help, maybe, just maybe we can be bigger than K-Mart.”

 

I still remember those exact words and the stunned silence of out KC team.  K-mart was one of, if not the largest of Kimberly Clark’s customers in 1986 and it was IMPOSSIBLE to imagine that Sam Walton’s dream (vision/fantasy/mirage/etc.) could ever come to life.  We politely finished the meeting and went out into the parking lot of Walmart’s HQ… which was literally the old Bentonville High School.  I remember the team laughed and was sure that this Arkansas retailer would NEVER be bigger than K-mart and that we could NEVER imagine putting a KC sales exec in that town, dedicated to working with Walmart.  If memory serves, Ralph Buckingham did decide to put a sales exec on Walmart to keep an eye on things but moved them to Memphis (over 300 miles from Bentonville.)

 

I share this story today for a few reasons:  

#1) I was triggered to capture this in writing by the announcement that the last K-mart in America is closing this month…. pictured above.  Not only is Walmart definitively bigger than K-mart, but they are also the largest retailer in the world by a mile!  

#2) Secondly, as a young marketing assistant in 1986, I wasn’t sure who was right in that Arkansas parking lot.  Sam Walton had big ideas and big dreams and was asking for our help…. and I had a sense that we could help him and the folks at Walmart.  The KC execs were so SURE that his vision was nothing more than a pipe dream or a fantasy… but didn’t completely dismiss him or them either.  I learned an early lesson (repeated numerous times across my career, most notably at Blockbuster, see https://fylegacy.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-gravity-of-blockbuster.html) that while “Change is Certain, Progress is not,” … no one can forecast the moments of massive transformation when “Change” morphs into “Progress”. 

 

#3) Finally, I have learned a ton across my career and am working hard today to keep adding to those important lessons.  In life and in business we operate in the “forward/drive” gear… there is no reverse.  Remember, we have an infinite INABILITY to change yesterday, but an infinite ABILITY to affect tomorrow!  Try hard to take the lessons of your past… or lessons you are learning today… and work hard to apply them to make tomorrow better than yesterday and “maybe, just maybe we can be bigger than K-mart!”

 

 

 

 

Leaders, remember… your “Words” matter!!

 

 

Over the years, I have posted numerous essays that focus on the impact of leaders and leadership across organizations large and small.  I had had the honor to lead small teams (2-3 team members as a brand manager at Kraft Foods) and large companies (3000+ team members as President & COO of Bolthouse Farms) and have learned a ton on that leadership journey.  As I wrote years ago in the essay (“Authenticity, the foundation of leadership”, https://fylegacy.blogspot.com/2009/06/authenticity-foundation-of-leadership.html), the alignment between the “words” and “actions” of a leader are closely watched and deeply important.  The concept of leaders working to stay close to the “rail of authenticity” that I describe in that essay is still a foundational idea that I share with leaders all the time.  The “alignment” (and at times the “misalignment) of a leader’s words & actions can be at the core of an organization running effectively and being led well ... or the opposite.  Additionally, I have written a number of essays (one titled “Our Actions Betray Our Intent,"https://fylegacy.blogspot.com/2017/06/our-actions-betray-our-intent.html ) describing how the alignment between “words & actions” are always reviewed or “watched” very carefully by organizations and ultimately a leader’s actions are scrutinized and “tell the tale” of what the leader really thinks is important or where her/his priorities truly lie.

In this context, I am currently overwhelmed (and angered) by the widespread mendacity 

mendacity, (noun) 

1.     the quality of being mendacious; untruthfulness; tendency to lie. 

2.    an instance of lying; falsehood. 

of prominent leaders across the business, media, and political landscapes.  This isn’t just a little bit of “spin control” here and there, but the outright disregard of the truth, and the comfort in creating, communicating, and spreading lies… often dangerous and felonious lies… is a trait in our current culture that needs to be called out and stamped out broadly!   For leaders of organizations of any shape, nature or size, this is trait of “public mendacity” is unacceptable and one not to be modeled… it is a trait to be fought!  I have chosen just a few examples that follow to bring this trend into sharp relief.  I will limit the direct quotes to a minimum not to further spread mistruths, but will share enough to illuminate the idea, and you the reader can do further research to validate the content.

 

“Mendacity in Business”

 

While the private sector is unfortunately full of examples of CEO’s (and many other senior leaders) “misrepresenting” the truth, you need to look no further than Elizabeth Holmes and her actions as the CEO of the disgraced firm Theranos.  Her lies about the efficacy of her testing technology, combined with her falsification of key financial records landed her (and other Theranos executives) under criminal investigation that lead to Ms. Holmes being found guilty of numerous felonies, now serving a 9+ yr prison term.  Leaders, remember … YOUR words matter!

 

“Mendacity in Media”

 

Again, as above there are numerous instances where key media leaders create, communicate and knowingly broadly share complete falsehoods to millions and at times billions of readers/listeners/followers.  One current & extreme example is Elon Musk, owner of the platform formally called twitter.  In a recent post, he shared the falsehood that Great Britain was building some type of “detainment camps” on the Falkland Islands… a complete falsehood.  While he ultimately took that post down (which he seems to be doing very often recently) it had almost 2 million views before it was taken down; while this instance of 2 million seems huge, the scope and impact of his privately owned media platform regularly generates billions of views of other posts equally untrue.  Leaders, remember … YOUR words matter!

 

 

“Mendacity in Politics”

 

Now this is a complicated and “touchy” space but one that needs to be called out… now more than ever.  Politics and political campaigns have always been an environment of hyperbole, exaggeration and “spin” and the American political landscape has been messy from the beginning.  There are famous allegations in the 1800 presidential race between Adams and Jefferson of one candidate alleging the other was the “devil” and even had a forked tail!  While a bit nutty in hindsight, still a clear falsehood.  In today’s race the falsehoods are uglier, and much more dangerous and I want to specifically reference the lies told by a certain republican V.P. candidate about the citizens of Springfield Ohio.  I am disgusted and offended by his rhetoric about certain legal residents of that city (as is the Republican Governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine) the audacity of the candidate knows no bounds.  He recently admitted that his allegations were untrue and suggested that it was fine for political leaders to knowingly share lies in order to get the attention of the media…. incredible!!  In what insane and distorted reality was someone taught that it was ok to spread lies about communities (lies that have led to numerous bomb threats and other public dangers) in order to garner public attention…unacceptable and dangerous traits like these need to be called out and repudiated!  Leaders, remember … YOUR words matter!

 

I will close my “mendacity examples” and refocus us on the important role and impact of leaders.  Leadership is hard, and no leader always makes the right calls.  You try hard, gather the facts, weigh your options and make your decisions the best way you know how… but you do so aligned to the TRUTH!  Leader’s “words & actions” are so closely watched that to treat them unknowingly, or carelessly is dangerous and will have an impact.  Leaders losing the guardrails and framework of truth and knowingly working from and spreading falsehoods is beyond cavalier and unacceptable… it is dangerous and at times criminal.  Reflect on what you see around you today and work hard to NOT follow the path of some of the leaders I shared above, but to be an example to your organizations of a leader who is working hard for their “words & actions” to stay as aligned to truth and reality as possible!

Optimize your resume... and remember "D/P/A" and "ATS"!

 It may seem odd that someone at my career point ( 39+ years of a business career and "retired" as of Feb 2024) would pass along advice about resume building.  While admittedly a bit out of norm, I have had a number of experiences over the past few months that has brought this topic into sharp relief.  A number of "young friends" ( no names in this essay, but all under 30 and all focused intently on job searches) have been working to apply to a myriad of jobs, all posted on line, and working to have their resume cut through the crowded online ( and often Linked In) landscape. 

 A few of these "friends" have applied to roles where there are literally hundreds of others who have applied for the same job on-line... think about it... trying to have your resume "fight" its way to the top of that list.... no small feat!  I am proud to say that a number of these "friends" have actually worked their way through that crazy landscape and have landed offers, roles, and key interviews for some very exciting companies/roles... and all have worked hard to make their resumes really work hard in that challenging competitive world.  With these examples in mind, I want to pass along two thoughts that may be helpful as you work to "optimize your resume."

"Remember "D/P/A:

A number of years ago I posted an essay focused on branding and brand differentiation.  This essay, titled "D/P/A:  a model for Marketplace Differentiation," ( you can find it by typing "Differentiation" into the search function at the left on homepage of this blog) was focused on the three key principles of brand differentiation that I was taught in my early marketing roles at The Coca Cola Company.  For a brand to compete, thrive and grow in a competitive marketplace, a marketer needed to remember the following three concepts, captured in the acronym "D/P/A:"

D: “Distinctive:” the job of the marketer was to work ceaselessly to find “distinctive” insights/concepts/messages/images to break through that clutter and create a “distinctive” spot in the landscape.  Your job with your brand was to ensure that you were NOT the same as other offerings ... you were competing against "sameness," not just Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, etc.  This concept must be translated to you and your resume in the same way... how are you distinctive ...what parts of your backgound, education or work experiences make you truly unique?? Your job is to ensure that those elements come to life in your resume as job #1.

P: “Preferred.” When I say, “preferred”, I mean that we need to be “preferred” vs. competitive alternatives by the “core user” and the “primary shopper/purchaser” for our business/brand.  Put yourself in the hiring manager's shoes and ask yourself... what are they looking for?? what do they need?? what candidate/resume would be preferred by them??  All of these questions are key as you think about your resume and your need to "tailor" it to each new role.  Each resume you post for each job needs to be edited/adjusted/optimized to try to be "preferred" for the role in question.

A: Advantaged. This final element pushes us to look at then entire “value chain” for a brand/business, to insure that we have a brand that is “advantaged” vs. competition.  How are you and your resume "advantaged" vs the other folks (potentially hundreds) also competing for that same role

Use the "D/P/A" model as you work to optimize your resumes ... I know it will help you be a stronger candidate and cut thought the competitive clutter.  While I recommend this model as a key foundation for stronger resumes, it means nothing if it fails to get through the "ATS" filter!

"Remember ATS"

ATS, or "Applicant Tracking System" is a AI powered tool used by a growing majority of hiring companies to manage the interview/hiring process. A recent post on "Jobscan" described it as:

What is an ATS?

An ATS is a computer software program that manages the hiring process. It does this by collecting and sorting thousands of resumes. Hiring managers can then screen candidates using the ATS, as well as track their progress through the hiring process. By digitizing the hiring process in this way, an ATS saves employers time and money. 

Here is link to a video that gives some great advice in this space:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jQwXfsOds4.  This reality that an "ATS" AI powered tool will do the first screening of your resume REQUIRES you to ensure that your resume not only works in ATS, but tells YOUR "D/P/A" story in the ATS landscape.  I had an unusual experience personally in this area that brought this idea to life.

Now that I am "retired" from Bolthouse Farms, I am getting calls to do some consulting...which on the whole is great!  For one client, a global consulting firm, I had to upload my bio into their portal as part of their onboarding process.  I didn't think much about that process until I was asked to "check" to see if their "ATS" tool had captured my bio accurately.  To my shock and concern, it was ALL WRONG!  I didn't receive my MBA from The College of Wooster ( that was a BA from Wooster, and an MBA from Vanderbilt) and my last job WASN'T as Chief Customer Officer for Kimberly Clark ( where I worked as a Marketing Assistant from 1985-1987, and I am proud to say that my last role was as  President and Chief Operating Officer of Bolthouse Farms! ) The reality is that it didn't matter what my bio was TRYING to show, all that mattered was what the ATS tool did in reality show.  Use the advice in the video above, or one of the tools (below)that were featured in a May 2024 blog essay on "Zapier" to help you build a strong, "D/P/A" driven resume that ROCKS through an ATS portal!!

The 5 best AI resume builders

• Teal for tracking multiple job applications

• Enhancv for building with an AI assistant

• Kickresume for generating a resume from scratch

• Resume Worded for leveraging your LinkedIn profile

• ResumeNerd for adapting your resume as you browse jobs

“Momentum”: a powerful dynamic in business and politics

 

 

 

Let’s start by saying that we are living in a moment of a real shift in “momentum.”  Wherever your politics may lie (and mine lie in the landscape where I am VERY excited about the current “momentum” shift of the democratic ticket) it is clear that something big has happened to change the momentum of the Harris/Walz ticket since President Biden chose to not run for office again on 7/21/24…. literally just 25 days ago!  Regardless of my excitement and enthusiasm, this moment has caused me to reflect on the nature of “momentum” and different approaches we could take to understand it and to take action to affect it not solely in the political landscape. 

 

The formula is age-old and pretty simple… an entity at rest has a certain size or mass…and when it is put into motion at a certain velocity… that combination of mass*velocity produces momentum.  While the formula is simple and straightforward, a little decomposition is helpful.  The size/mass of an entity is a bid deal in this equation.  An “entity’s” size, scale, or mass really matters here… think about a small object (pebble) vs a large object ( a car)… or to go farther think about a very small object ( grain of sand) vs a very large object ( Boeing 757) the size matter to what energy is requires to get the entity moving.  This is an important idea to consider when YOU may want/need to change the momentum of something you are dealing with.  In our current political landscape, the momentum was declining for the democrats coming into the summer and a major action…. a big burst of energy was needed to change the momentum of the race… President Biden’s announcement on 7/21/24 was just that sort of bombshell… it was a big “velocity” driver that began moving the mass of the electorate and in less than 4 weeks has dramatically changed the momentum of the upcoming election.

 

The current political landscape is quite a case study, this also aligns well to my experience in business.  In 2019, I was fortunate to be part of a small team that had the chance to buy Bolthouse Farms “back” from the Campbell Soup Company.  I had been part of the team that sold it to them in 2012, and after leaving in 2015, the business went into a dramatic decline.  By 2019, the business was a mess… topline sales declining by double digit rates, bottom-line profitability declining even faster.  Bolthouse Farms is a large company with thousands of employees, numerous facilities and at that moment in early 2019 quite a mess.  We KNEW that by “buying it back”, it would take an incredible amount of energy to “turn the ship” and rebuild positive momentum.  What we didn’t know at that moment in June of 2019 when we closed on the deal was that Covid-19 was around the corner.  That global pandemic provided more unexpected challenges but pushed us to put even more effort and energy into the business of regaining positive topline and bottom-line momentum!  The business today is very strong and has a lot of momentum across the board… but the energy and effort to move that “mass” was incredible in reflection.

 

I think its pretty clear how the idea of “momentum” comes to life in politics and business, and the significant effort it can take to “change” the momentum of a situation going in the wrong direction… when the momentum of something is negative and possibly worsening, it is vital to act immediately and apply maximum effort to change the trajectory of the entity in motion… one must act immediately with maximum effort.  What is not so clear is what to do when the momentum is good/strong and going in the right direction.  What is the key to keeping the business/ political situation on the right path and maybe even gaining “more” momentum?  Let’s look back at the formula above for some insights here.  In my experience, “P” (Momentum) is not static… it is not a steady/constant/guaranteed idea. 

 “P” is a dynamic reality always moving and as a business or political reality grows and gains success, it actually increases its mass (“M”) and without an increase in velocity (“V”), momentum (“P”) actually reduces.  This reality reminds us that the better we do, and the larger we grow… the MORE energy we need to exert to keep that growth and success going.  

 

It may seem exhausting, but across my career, the moment I have seen business/political leaders celebrate success (often assuming it would continue on its own) and stop investing in the people/ ideas/technology NEEDED for future growth, momentum would begin to erode and start heading in the wrong direction.  The reality is you can NEVER stop putting energy into a good situation with good momentum, and if it’s a bad situation with negative momentum, you need to take action immediately and deploy maximum energy/effort to get that momentum to shift!  Don’t forget the simple formula above… it may seem like a high school physics tool, but it is deeply true and applicable all around us today!

postscript: the current presidential political campaign is an incredible example of the dynamics of "momentum" and the polling chart below shows it dramatically.  With less than 3 months to election day, this is going to be an incredible "case study" !

 

 

Living without Regret... The lesson of Zermatt

 

It humbling to realize, but it was 15 years ago this week that my old boss and dear friend Bruce Paynter passed away after a battle with ALS.  Bruce meant the world to me then ( and in the years before his passing) and I think of him often today.  Bruce is very much in "present tense" with me today and so many times over the past year leading Bolthouse Farms I have often thought back and wondered... "what would Bruce say/do in this situation."  It was almost exactly 15years ago today that I wrote an essay ( one of a number) that was inspired by a final conversation that I had with Bruce, titled "Living without Regret," ( read it here...https://fylegacy.blogspot.com/2009/07/living-without-regret.html)   "As I sit here today, this topic of "Living without Regret" is again on my mind, and I wanted to share a few thoughts/learnings that might be helpful.

In my readings this week, I came across a CNBC article that dug into a book (You only Die Once: How to make it to the end with no regrets, by Jodi Wellman) on this topic.  A very insightful part of the article was the author's description of "Regrets of Commission" vs "Regrets of Omission" and how they were different and had different dynamics.  In the author's view, "Regrets of Omission" were the really dangerous ones... things you regret NOT DOING in your life.... and areas to focus on and work on in your life.  This idea really got me thinking and in the soul searching I became center on a story from my life and a lesson in this specific area that I describe "The lesson of Zermatt."

While I have never been to Zermatt (YET!!), my Aunt Lorraine spent many trips when she was younger ( quite literally skiing there in the 1960's with a group of here closest female friends) and for her Zermatt ( with the magnificent views of the Matterhorn) was one of her most precious spots on earth.  I knew this growing up, and thought about Switzerland/Zermatt/The Matterhorn as a sort of mythical Swiss "Valhalla"where the cows wore bells, no cars were allowed and the Swiss chocolate flowed from every corner.  I thought to myself when I was young that someday ( when I hade "made it") I would treat Aunt Lorraine to a trip back to HER Zermatt!

Well, the years and decades moved on, and as a person busy with a family and a business career, I never had the time for the big Zermatt trip.  It wasn't until 2015, after selling Bolthouse Farms to Campbell's and thinking my time was done in "carrot-land" ( oh how naive!!) that I talked to Aunt Lorraine about my big idea... how about we take a big trip back to Zermatt??  Now this was 9 years ago, and Aunt Lorraine was in her 80's still doing well ( in my eyes) but she quickly said that while it was a great idea, she couldn't go!  I was dumbstruck and started selling... I would pickup the tickets, I would come get her in NJ.... I wanted to handle all the objections!  Aunt Lorraine was patient, but persistent to say that a trip like that would have been great a few years ago, but in 2015 it would be too much... too scary... here capabilities too limited...and she wasn't up for a trip like that anymore.... she would never go back to Zermatt.  While at first I was frustrated with her, I realized that I was the culprit... I had blown it; my intense regret ( "Regret of Omission") was my burden and in many ways still is!

While Aunt Lorraine is still alive, she is now in hospice and is nearing her end-of life and I have deep and precious memories of her across my entire life.  I share this story as a personal nudge ( to myself and the readers) to say that life is short and very fragile and if there are any regrets ( and especially "Regrets of Omission') in your lives today, it high time to take action NOW!  Someday I will find my path to Zermatt, and will take a keepsake of Aunt Lorraine with me on that trip in honor and in memory of that incredible woman.  I will also keep Zermatt active in my mind today... thinking about what actions I NEED to take NOW, focused on the "Regrets of Omission" in my life today, and I encourage all readers to take a few minutes and do the same... do you have any "Zermatts" in your life that need action now??

"Delay only increases the Danger”

 

 

A few weeks ago, I was sharing a walk and a focused “work conversation” with a dear friend.  He has been dealing with an emerging issue among the executive team at his company, and we discussed scenarios, alternatives and action plans as we “got our steps in” that sunny afternoon.   As the conversation progressed, the situation became clearer and more worrisome to me, the “outside observer.”  As I shared some advice (you knew I would have a couple of ideas, ha!) the primary message I was trying to pass along was regardless of scenario… take action NOW and get better prepared to take more action IMMEDIATELY!

 

This need for a heightened “sense of urgency” was clear to both of us as we finished our walk, and my friend headed out to start taking action that same evening.  I won’t divulge any details, but the action steps taken have led to major executive changes, organization realignment and board level communications on the new path forward.   A few days ago, this same friend texted over a quote from that reinforced the situation and the path we discussed…. “Once you know there’s a problem, delay only increases the danger” (David Ricks, Chair and CEO Eli Lily). 

 

 Across my career, I have been struck by how many times we waited too long to deal with things we knew were a problem.  I reflect on individuals who we KNEW weren’t making the grade…. often senior executives whose poor performance not only affected the business but was destructive to the organization/culture broadly.  In hindsight in each circumstance…” delay only increased the danger.”   None of the situations got better with time… quite the opposite, and just like my friend’s recent challenges you must dive in and get prepared Immediately to take action quickly.  It doesn’t just happen on its own…. You must work hard and fast to stop the delay at hand!

 

This whole situation reminded me of a moment when I worked for The Coca-Cola Company in the mid-1990’s.  Business was booming, stock prices rising, and Coke had just been awarded the most admired company two years in a row by Fortune Magazine (1995 & 1996).  As a part of the 1996 annual report, our Chairman Roberto Goizueta included a quote from the German poet/novelist/playwright Goethe in his annual letter ( see below.)  The focus was on taking action and the specific phrase that stayed with me was “Boldness has genius power and magic in it. Begin it now.”  At that moment, in early 1997 there didn’t seem to be any major issues or concerns facing The Coca Cola Company that we couldn’t handle… and in reality, we were on fire!  What none of us knew at that moment was that within 18 months Roberto would have passed away, we would proceed through four CEO’s and executive teams in less than 8 years… the stock price would plummet, major layoffs would begin, and in a very short amount of time we all KNEW there were a lot of problems all across the company!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The message of this essay is all about taking action, and not getting comfortable/complacent with delay.  I worked at Coke for another eleven years post Roberto’s letter above and worked hard on a myriad of areas that needed real help… all things that “delay” only made worse.  I had to work on my own “action orientation” and to be inspired by Goethe’s quote… “begin it now.”  I encourage readers of this essay to let these words…”delay on increases the danger” … to really sink in and work hard TODAY to take action where needed immediately!

“Buen Camino”

 

 

Well, it’s been almost a month since returning from walking a segment of the Camino in Spain, and I think it’s time to try to capture a few thoughts and learnings from the journey.  Its an understatement to say that I am still processing the experience… and probably will continue to digest and rethink moments of the journey for months to come.  I shared the “walk” with my sweet Jennie, my sister Alice and her husband (my brother-in-law) Jan Willem. 

 We dubbed ourselves the “Four Pilgrims” and shared the time together from the first steps in Vigo Spain, to our destination in Santiago de Compostela (along the Camino Portugues) 103km later.  First, let’s have a bit of background:

 

As for the Camino de Santiago, pilgrims have been walking to Santiago for well over 1000 years from points across medieval Europe, and numerous “pilgrim trails” (or Caminos) have been established over the centuries.  The most popular path is the “Camino Frances”, that emanates in France, crosses the Pyrenes and ends in Santiago 700+ km later.  We walked a segment of the Camino Portugues, a path that starts in Lisbon.  We started in Vigo Spain, a busy port city in the province of Galicia in Northwestern Spain.  The religious history of pilgrims walking to Santiago emanates from the 900’s, when tradition holds that the body of one of Jesus’s apostles, James the greater, was re-discovered in a small village in Galicia and a local Bishop and King paid homage to the martyred saint and built a chapel to house the stone coffin.  That small church became the Cathedral in Santiago ( built in the 13^th century) where the remains are held in a chapel below the main altar.  To learn more about the history of the Camino, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camino_de_Santiago)

As for the “Four Pilgrims,” we all came at this adventure by different   paths.  I have been reading about the Camino de Santiago for years and  become focused on it when a friend of mine (my “pal” Todd) walked the Camino almost a decade ago.   Linked to my retirement (Feb 2024) , I wanted to do the Camino as part of that transition.  Jennie was up for the adventure, and we began “rough” planning late last fall.  At a family Thanksgiving gathering, we talked to my sister and her husband about the idea, and they were eager to join in… the reality is that my sister is facing some significant health challenges, so the decision to head out on a 100+km “walk” on the Camino was no small thing!  With the background set, let’s get walking!

As I mentioned above, we kicked off our journey in Vigo, a busy port city in NW Spain near the border with Portugal.  I won’t try to make this essay a travelogue but I do want to share a few of the poignant moments across out journey.  Our first task was to make our way out of Vigo in the midst of heavy morning traffic.  We were walking on sidewalks next to busy streets and traffic circles, losing our way a bit but by mid-day we had worked our way out of the city to much quieter pathways and incredible views of the “Bay of Vigo” and the Atlantic in the distance. 

 

It was incredible how once out of the city, we spent most of the afternoon in deep forest, and the pace and the quietness really slowed things down.  At numerous spots along the trail we would see “Pilgrim Shrines’(my descriptor) where fellow “pilgrims” had left notes, shells, shoes, photos, money, etc. marking their experiences on the Camino….and while each “shrine” was a bit different, they all reminded us that we were part of a larger “flow” of pilgrims who have been making this same journey for over 1000 years.

A few days in we stopped for a night in a small historic town of Arcade, the sight of a significant battle in the Napoleonic wars of 1809.  Our hotel just 

happened to be across the street from a “Pilgrim’s church,” found regularly on our path.  While beautiful, the image ( a bit blurry for sure) of a dove sitting atop the cross on the church steeple was beyond touching.  With the news filled with war stories coming from the Middle East and Ukraine, it seemed fitting and needed to be reminded by that simple little dove, calling us all to find a straighter path to peace for all humanity.

A day or two later, we stopped in an another “Pilgrim’s Church” which had the “Pilgrim’s Beatitudes” (in English and Spanish) posted in the entryway.  While all ten are worth your time, #9 caught my attention….

“9-Blessed are you, Pilgrim, if on the way you find yourself and give yourself unhurried time so as not to neglect the image of your heart.”

 

Now that little phrase, old #9, really packs a punch!  First giving “yourself unhurried time” seems hard to imagine in our high tech/high tempo/multimedia/multi-platform world of 2024.  The Camino provided an incredible amount of “unhurried time,” with day after day of 6-7 hours of walking… and most of that time with limited to non-existent connectivity.  Peaceful and thoughtful indeed.  I won’t try to editorialize the idea of “not neglecting the image of your heart,” but this phrase and idea is still revolving in my mind ( and heart) today.  

 

Back on the trail and we soon came upon a small sign marking that we were walking along the “Via Romana XIX.”  

While I knew we were walking along trails that fellow pilgrims have been travelling since the mid 900’s, I didn’t have any idea that most of our 100+km would be along the old roman road #19, built more that 2000 years ago.  I found that feeling of being a small part of larger and growing history to be an incredible and humbling part of our time in Spain!

One element that we faced across our walking had to do with the dynamic of changing weather.  We had some sunny days, but as we got closer to Santiago, the days became cool and rainy.  Regardless of the temps or the rainfall, the Camino called us onward everyday… so trudge forward we did!  On our last day, with 15km left to go to arrive at the cathedral in Santiago, we awoke to 39 degrees and a heavy rain… a tough start for sure!  After a good breakfast (“you are going to want a hot breakfast”!)  We hit the trail and as the rain got heavier, we were losing our energy for sure. 

  

Deep in a forest, we stopped to adjust our packs and started considering options… “maybe we could find a taxi in the next village” … you know, that kind of thing.  After a few more km along the track, we did find a small bar open in a village and ducked in to dry off, use the bathrooms and consider our next moves.

We were not alone… the place was full of other pilgrims trying to dry off, dropping their packs, etc.  I ducked into the bar, jammed with fellow walkers, and was able to buy a small chocolate bar… a Kinder Bueno!  Breaking it into 4 pieces, we all had a bite and that small taste of chocolate really hit home.  Rather than calling for a taxi, we looked outside and realized that the rain was slowing… so we decided to “try another few km” as we made our way to the heart of Santiago.  The blessing and power of Kinder Bueno!!

 

In that mode of “try another few km” at a time, we got to the plaza in front of the Cathedral by midafternoon, and the emotional release was dramatic.  We had made it through the rain of that day…. through the hills and valleys, deep forest tracks and busy streets of the previous week, and we had walked “our Camino” successfully as we rested, cried a bit, and took photos in front of the Cathedral.  I won’t try to summarize the experience… that doesn’t seem appropriate or fair.  I am so glad that we went on our Camino and so glad we did it when we did; and I know for certain that I will be “chewing on” and processing the experience for years to come!  

 

I will close with the phrase that’s the title of this essay… “Buen Camino.”  As you walk along the Camino, you pass other pilgrims, and local townspeople and as you pass them, they say that phrase… “Buen Camino” ... to you and you share it back to them…. literally hundreds of times a day.  It becomes part of the language of the journey, almost a type of prayer said over and over again on the trail… may we all have and wish for others a good walk of life…. “Buen Camino!”