Last September my mom passed away. She fell victim to Alzheimer’s, so in some sense I lost her long before that. Her pastor from Duxbury, Father Bob, sent to me the first of a four part book on grieving written by Kenneth Haugk. I have been through 3 of the 4 books. When I send him a thank you note, he sends me the next book- works for me. I will finish the 4th after my return from the Camino. My grief over losing my mom returned today when I was praying, thinking about her and talking to her in a beautiful church in a small village, Navarrete, called Church of the Assumption of Santa Maria built in the 16th century. I felt not only my grief but also the grief of others. Grief is a mysterious feeling- impossible to control or predict when it will rise up and try to consume you. I let it have its moment (you can’t fight) as I sat in the church and soon happy memories of my mom filled my thoughts and grief receded. The rest of the today’s walk was peaceful and positive- just another blessed day on the Camino. We went through a lot of industrial areas and followed a lot of highways- that happens on the Camino.

Wherever you go in the world, you can always find an Irish bar. The shot above was taken at St. Patrick’s Pub in Logrono- Irish to the hilt, including a bunch of hooligans

Logrono had its own version of the scallop

Santa Maria de la Assumption

Live music ( we’ll sort of) on the Camino

Yes, there is fishing on the Camino