Day 33-Headkeeper
My head and I had a great day today. As I left Albergue Rehoboth, the sun arose into a clear sky. I started with 3 layers of clothes and finished the day with just one. My mind seems the most active at the start of the day. As the miles pass by, and there were 18 of them today, my mind begins to dull and thoughts are harder to come by. I guess that may be called fatigue. Anyway, a very Camino dynamic is Pilgrims helping other Pilgrims, whether they know them or not. Total strangers will share their food. Most will offer food from their pack whenever they take it out. Most of the time, I notice people accepting the offer. Pilgrims will share accommodations to Pilgrims who have no place to stay. They will help with medicines, supplies, and water. Sometimes it’s words of encouragement. On one of the early days when I was suffering pretty bad with my bronchitis, a beast of a hill lay before me, not too long but the grade was obscene. I was sweating profusely and coughing at the base of the climb. A Pilgrim came up to me and offered some dried pineapple bits to help me up the climb. I accepted the offer and made it up the hill. Whether it was the Pilgrim’s generosity or the pineapple itself, it helped and I was grateful. This Pilgrim and I saw each other many times after that and I kept thanking him and telling the story to other Pilgrims. I guess the point of all of this is we Pilgrims feel like we are all in “this” together. The question is what is “this”? I think we each have our own “this”, maybe the same, maybe similar or maybe different but that doesn’t stop us from supporting one another- a beautiful aspect of the Camino.
I did not see one Pilgrim during my 18 miles on the Camino today. I did see a local, an old man walking with a long stick. I saw him off in the distance- my pace just a bit faster than his. After a time, I caught up to him. In my best Spanish accent, I said “Buenos Dias”. He looked at me, smiled and said “Buen Camino”. In that look and smile I could see he genuinely wished me well but there was also this look of joy/pride on his face in seeing a foreigner coming to his country and walking hundreds of miles of his land in search of something- a great Camino moment which will stay with me.
A church in a small town under renovation. There’s hope
I saw a number of churches today as I passed through tiny hamlets. I enjoyed them all , including 2 I could enter
Today’s lunch stop
Town sign barely noticeable in the background
Shots of the house I am staying in tonight. I am the only one here. It’s awesome. There are no restaurants in the town so the woman I am renting from drove me to the next town over. I had a great meal and the owner of the restaurant drove me home- another Camino moment!