We Have All the Time in the World

Ten days in at the time of writing this and I'm changing up my Camino routine.  I'm still finding my pace!  For one, I think I'm going to walk less than I had planned, depending on the locations of where to stay each night.  My Achilles tendon decided that for me when it started aching more than usual, combined with a bit of swelling that resulted in having to break into my first aid supply of ibuprofen. Not to mention, on today's walk I had to stop briefly after only an hour to sit and rest and let the pain subside.  I decided that it must just be the walk/terrain/my feet and not the weight.  My back and shoulders haven't ached at all from the weight of my pack, which I'm incredibly grateful for.

I also think I'm missing things and a bit of the history that I cross on my path.  I should stop to admire the beautiful Cathedrals, but instead I'm rushing to get to the next point, eating on the go as I walk (which someone pointed out to me was a very American thing to do), and mapping out a schedule to reach Santiago when I know I have more time than I need, even with my hope to go to Finisterra.  It's like I'm holding myself to an imaginary schedule that could be sacrificing the overall experience.  And I have no idea why.

Who am I competing against? How will it change the reward or what am I trying to prove?  It's the first itme in my life that I don't need a schedule, or have any appointments to make, and I made them for myeslf anyway.

I've heard of people who achieved amazing athletic feats on the Camino like running it all in 9 days or walking to Pamplona on the first leg, but none of this to me was ever about the sport.  A couple of times, I've actually caught myself counting my steps or just staring at my feet as walked and completely missing the landscape around me.

So the new rules I want to put into practice are:

1. Walk less/slower (seek a true fulfilling experience in your steps)
2. Don't compete (even if it's just with your self)
3. Look up (except maybe not on the terrible downhill slopes)

My body will get me there if I listen to it, and being broken isn't worth being faster. And I don't think I'll have the opportunity to do this again, at least not in this way with the current status of my life.  I think if I didn't follow these rules and continued otherwise, it would be like I was sleepwalking, but without the dream.

Let it Be

I walked from Grañon to Villafranca de Montes de Oca.  It was about 28km and puts me at the base of the hill I have to climb tomorrow.  I think three days in a row of nearly 30km is definitely the limit. Tomorrow will be a short day, but with a few hills in the beginning. And does anyone know what to do for pain in the Achilles tendon?! Please don´t say, "Stop walking."

I´m staying in a pilgrim hostel, that´s actually a part of a hotel.  The owner had walked the Camino before and now uses part of his hotel as a place for travelling pilgrims.  Around 5pm (when I was in the middle of updating the blog), an incredible storm began and I ran to grab my laundry hanging on the line outdoors.  When I returned, water started actually leaking through the roof and the lights started flickering.  I automatically wondered about my friend Mac (Washington D.C.) who I met last night and said he was going to camp out on this very night on a hillside up ahead.

It´s interesting how on the Camino we so easily start to care about complete strangers and offer them everything from money to first aid to free walking sticks or networking for the future.  I´ve reached a point where I´m seeing less of the people I started out with and meeting more new people each day.  I finally started meeting other Americans after hardly seeing any this whole time, and was told that most of the Americans are a couple days ahead.  I´ve met people who started before or after me, and from all different starting points.  We truly are at our own pace, but it´s hard to think that I may not see some of them for the rest of my time here.  I suppose I just have to let it be.

I spent most of yesterday charting the rest of my Camino.  I came here with a "go with the flow" attitude, then recently started getting more interested in the distances I've been able to acheive each day and where and how far I can go.  I think I may be able to finish in 30 or 31 days to Santiago if my body doesn't break.  I'm not sure if that's normal or not, but I'm also hoping to have enough strength to add on 3 or 4 more days in order to reach the Atlantic to watch the sunset.

I know I shouldn't obsess over the mathematics of it all, and concentrate on the journey, but I think I'm just anxious for the experience.  Maybe for the transformation, or to put all the thoughts I've been having into action, or to just be proud of something (myself?).

I´ve also been considering my own ability to be more open since I don't think I'm very good at it.  I don't really talk much about myself besides my name, where I'm from and where I went to University, or other places that I've travelled.  Maybe it's easier to be more open with strangers because you don't really consider the long term impact or judgement that might occur.  It's like they're each potential psychologists with varying, though questionable, degrees of qualification.  Sometimes, I think they can help you reach a revelation that you may not have gained otherwise.  Still,  I can't seem to get over the fact that although this is a personal journey, I still care what others might think. It seems like I can let the presence of other peoples' lives in my life be, but not so much mine in theirs.  Yet another thing to think through and work on during the walks ahead.

--J