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To Ynys Enlli, the Island of 20,000 Saints

To Ynys Enlli, the Island of 20,000 Saints

Sunday 12th January 2025
Richard Skinner

To Ynys Enlli, the Island of 20,000 Saints - by way of Tenby
The Taith Pererin Gogledd Cymru or Welsh Camino - or more prosaically the North Wales Pilgrim's Way - began for me late last summer prayerfully submerged in the cold, clear waters of St Winifred's Well along with a boisterous family of Travellers all Hail Marys and rosaries followed by a priestly blessing.

Over winter I discovered the Journeying website and signed up with friend Terry for a week of walking near Tenby guided - and nurtured - by David and Sue, part spiritual directors and part inclusive hosts gently pulling together a diverse group of pilgrims seeking out strands of Celtic Christianity.

How God blessed us in our journey, singing together in the cliff chapel of St Govan and crossing the water to the abbey on Caldey Island where after one of the daily offices we walked on to the cliff top bathed in sunshine and the vivid pinks of countless blooms of thrift. Surely not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like these.
And also on the island I found a piece of dry wood propped up against a barn wall, a stick really, perfect in size for walking. That stick became my staff and back home I revived it with coats of teak oil, all ready to complete my Welsh Camino this September along the Llyn peninsula to Aberdaron then, as R. S. Thomas wrote to 'an island there is no going but in a small boat the way the saints went...' - Ynys Enlli, the Island of 20,000 Saints.

I ended my journey as I began, in water, this time with a swim from a sandy beach on the island within sight of seals, joyful and thankful for having completed my walk.

I'm starting to learn what the gift of pilgrimage is really all about: Andrew Jones tells us it's seeking a place of resurrection whatever that might mean, a weaving together of our inner and outer journeys, a time of uncertainty and vulnerability.
The first two lines of a prayer by Murray Bodo I took with me became my daily prayer along the way:
I am not in control
I am not in a hurry
I walk in faith and hope
I greet everyone with peace
I bring back only what God gives me.

(Richard Skinner, October 2023)