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Walking in the Mud
The Diary of a DIY Camino
by Phil Volker
Edited by Kathryn Barush and Rebecca Graves
Foreword by David S. Zucker MD
Afterword by Annie O'Neil
Imprint: Resource Publications
After facing a life-changing cancer diagnosis, Phil Volker started walking a circuitous route around his ten-acre backyard. It was a chance to exercise, which his doctors had encouraged, but also created a sacred space to think and pray. Realizing that he was covering quite a distance, he found a map of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route and began to map his progress, calculating that 909 laps would get him from St. Jean Pied-de-Port to the Cathedral of St. James. Volker completed five caminos, five hundred miles each, without leaving his backyard, and many visitors have found healing, solace, and consolation in walking with him. Phil's life was transformed by what he calls his three Cs--Camino, Catholicism, and Cancer. Part spiritual autobiography, part pilgrimage journal, and part Old Farmer's Almanac, this book is the story of his journey.
Phil Volker was a Catholic pilgrim, Marine Corps vet, master woodworker, husband, father, and grandfather. He lived on Vashon Island in Washington, where he spent his last ten years journeying with cancer and writing about that and his camino every day. He mapped the Camino de Santiago, which became a metaphor for his life, until his death in October 2021.
Kathryn Barush is Thomas E. Bertelsen Jr. Chair and associate professor of art history and religion at the Graduate Theological Union and Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University in Berkeley, California. She is the author of Imaging Pilgrimage: Art as Embodied Experience (2021).
Rebecca Graves has been a teacher, neurodevelopmental therapist, writer, and fiber artist. She lives on Vashon Island, where she and Phil Volker were happily married for forty-five years.
“Phil, in this book, shows himself to be a wise, kind, and humorous guide. He’s just the person you want as a traveling companion on the Camino de Santiago or the Camino of Life.”
—Jessika Satori, author of Come to My Dinner Party: The Odes
“Phil’s backyard Camino is a ritual space where memory, deeper understanding, and the clarity of desire slowly merge through the simple act of walking, noticing, and praying. This is embodied prayer—body and soul, heart and mind—the revelatory medium of the deeper wisdom of the heart. . . . Phil’s Camino melds with our own; we find we are not alone. Perhaps that is what the world most needs now.”
—Paul Janowiak, SJ, Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University
“As his rehabilitation physician, I witnessed Phil face his stage-four cancer, haltingly at first, then with growing kindness and confidence. Befriending his disease, Phil walks a transformational path that guides him beyond death and into spirit, joy, and wisdom. This work is a gentle cartography of the soul, an intimate portrait of one man’s courageous journey with important lessons for each of us.”
—David S. Zucker, Swedish Cancer Institute
“Phil created a Camino in his backyard and a global neighborhood in his blog. In this neighborhood, there is a ‘tapas table’ where everyone is welcome to have a seat and rest; a place for hearts, souls, and minds to open and where meaningful, healing conversations flow. This book is an open window to that ‘tapas table’ . . . an invitation for us all to join . . . no matter where we are.”
—Cris Milher, Universidad de Buenos Aires
“Faith, hope, and love. In a time when so many are looking for things to be hopeful for, we have a book that restores our faith. In ourselves, in humanity. Phil harnesses the power of love by walking. Walk with him in this healing journey. You’ll be glad you did.”
—John Conway, veteran, farmer, pilgrim
“Phil tells his story, encouraging the reader to reflect upon and make the most of their real life. Central is his understanding of and commitment to true healing which leads to well-being with a charming and memorable style. I have enjoyed sharing this story with family and friends.”
—Ron Angert, hospitalero in training, Camino de Santiago
“When Phil walked the Camino de Santiago, he received a new set of eyes. He’s now able to see things that have always been there that he’d never seen before. In these pages, we learn that Phil’s story is the story of each of us. It’s all about our new set of eyes.”
—Tom Hall, commander, chaplain corps, US Navy, Retired
“Phil Volker was a remarkable human being with an authentic human story that only he can tell. Ultimately, I believe it’s about resiliency and courage in the face of adversity. Walking in the Mud can inspire a sense of resilience among all of us—regardless of our own medical and life circumstances.”
—Arash Asher, MD, Cedars-Sinai Cancer Center
“Through the act of walking the Camino de Santiago (on a pathway carved out through his own backyard), Phil learns to stop fighting to cure his cancer and embraces physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. . . . With a great gift for musing and finding grace in the present, he invites us to join him: to not just show up for life but to partake. Join us on the pilgrimage. Savor the walk. It’ll do your heart good.”
—Terry Hershey, author of Stand Still: Finding Balance When the World Turns Upside Down
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