I Am a Pilgrim Who Lost Homeland
I Am a Pilgrim Who Lost Homeland
by Cong Do | Sunnyvale, CA
Portomarín is a town located on the Camino Francés. When the Spanish government built a hydroelectric dam on the Miño River in the 1960s, the original site of Portomarín, more than 1,000 years old, would be flooded. To preserve its historical heritage, key buildings including the 12th-century Romanesque church of San Xoán de Portomarín were dismantled and then rebuilt stone by stone.
Portomarín, just passed by and no one waited
The oldest village of the journey
The pebbles lying there for a hundred years
The moss swaying in shadows peacefully
The vast Miño River still runs tirelessly
Thousands of miles fly forever of birds
Shrimp and fish drifting under the osprey’s eyes
Afternoon falls but the pilgrim has not returned yet
Portomarín, I passed and would not return ever
The lonely herdsman’s shadow on the road
The streams flow forever without stopping
And the birds sing endlessly in the forest
Each step moves forward
Through the villages that have been resting for thousands of years
The rooster crows at noon, the dogs run around wildly
I am a pilgrim who lost homeland
The old bell tower echoes sadly
The ancient stone statues stand forever
The cross waits for rain and wind daily
In the morning mist, a church bell suddenly rings
