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| León Cathedral |
Trust That The Camino Will Provide
I was leaving León with the knowledge that large mountain passes were coming in 3 days. I was carrying about 1.5 kg / 3 lbs of gear that I did not need. I needed to lighten my load and this meant sending my gear onward to Santiago. To do this meant leaving this with the concierge of my hotel albeit a super luxurious one. The concierge could not mail this until Tuesday. What was this gear? My Samsung Galaxy tablet and other important personal items. I would not be happy if this were lost or stolen as personal data and precious photos were on this device.
I would have to either trust that the Camino would meet my needs or carry this dead weight over several large mountain passes. I chose to trust the Camino (eg God, Universe) or in this case a Parador concierge and a hotel manager in my Santiago hotel whom I have never met. This did require a fair amount of trust as either party could have easily taken my valuables with very little recourse. Still I felt it more important to risk loss and honor my Camino motto "Trust that the Camino Will Provide." I gave this trust to my Guardian Angel and walked out of my hotel that day.
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| Pilgrim Statue after La Virgen del Camino |
Would a Taxi Be Best Today?
Before I started I knew that today's route would be mentally tough as it had a great deal of "The Suck." The scenery today would bring truck stops instead of cathedrals and busy highways instead of nature trails. I really contemplated whether it would be OK to take a taxi and bypass this decidedly non-scenic portion.
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| This Horse Needed Me in The Suck |
Sometimes We Need to be in The Suck
My Guardian Angel reminded me that the Camino is a metaphor for life; the good and the bad. Sometimes we're needed in the bad. I decided against the taxi and looked forward to walking even if the scenery would leave something to be desired.
I'm glad I did because I made a difference to a living soul that day. I heard some strange rustling to my left. I glanced and I saw something that seemed to be very much out of place. It was a horse tied to a tree in a suburban area beside a highway. Inspecting more closely I noticed the horse seemed to be in some distress because the rope had gotten dangerously tangled around his legs. I looked around for somebody to help because I was not sure what to do. There was nobody. I prayed for guidance and cautiously approached the horse. I consider it a miracle that the horse trusted I was there to help him and let me loosen his rope and untangle him.
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| Still 298 km / 200 mi to Santiago |
I felt I indeed learned a lesson in that situation. Sometimes we need to be in The Suck because others will need us to help them. It was a powerful lesson because I had no idea what to do at first. There was nobody around to help. I took action albeit cautiously and made a difference in that horse's day. I felt God in me and I was ok walking by truck stops and warehouses on this day. I also vowed to see how I could be of assistance to others when I am in The Suck.
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| Puente de Orbigo - Site of a famous medieval tournament |
When a Knight Loves a Lady
One of my spiritual reasons for doing El Camino centered around love and a relationship. This bridge leading into Hospital de Orbigo thus held a special meaning to me for its fame of being associated with a love affair.
In 1434 the Leonese Knight Suero de Quiñones held what was likely Europe's last medieval jousting tournament all over a lady.
The Knight had been scorned by his lady. His first move was to don an iron collar around his neck as a symbol that he considered himself bound to her. Somehow that did not impress her.
He then tried a different angle. He then challenged all the Knights of Europe to bring their lances and meet him on the Puente de Orbigo. It didn't take long for this to go "viral" or the medieval equivalent of this. European nobility who had grown weary of court politic and gruesome dynastic wars yearned for the simpler times where a Knight, by force of his personality and noble cause, could prevail. He became legendary in Spanish history and was mentioned in Don Quixote.
The highly anticipated tourney commenced with much fanfare and a large audience of Pilgrims. The jousting went on for several weeks and after each day's contest the knights and their entourage enjoyed grand banquets in the Corporate Hospitality Tent of the Day. Suero met all his challengers and emerged victorious against all. But as luck would have it one of the knights, Gutierre, was a bit of a bad sport about the whole thing and swore revenge.
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| Did Suero pine for an ancestor of McKayla Maroney? |
On the final day of the Tourney, Suero proclaimed that he proved his fealty to the secret lady but alas she was not impressed.
He then removed his iron band and claimed to be free of the prison of love. To demonstrate this he vowed to journey to Santiago as a pilgrim. He did and deposited a jewel-encrusted golden bracelet as a token off his release from the bonds of love. That bracelet is in the Cathedral in Santiago.
As luck would have it 24 years later Suero was riding in the open Spanish countryside when he came upon Gutierre who was still holding a grudge. The two dropped their visor and charged. A moment later the quixotic Suero lay dead.
Why didn't he just talk to the lady he loved so?
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| Albergue in Orbigo |
A Camino Lesson on How to Really Serve in The Suck
I liked how I found myself where I needed to be on The Camino. I was not supposed to be in Orbigo but ended up there because there were no accommodations in the town where I planned to stop for the day. I wound up in much simpler accommodations than in León; An Albergue with no heat, hot water or toilet paper that cost 5 euros.
But I knew that a tourist demands, a Pilgrim accepts. I was thankful for my bed as I was the fellow German, Japanese and Spanish pilgrims I encountered. Hey I ended up sharing a cabin with two 19 yo girls from Barcelona even.
But most importantly about that day was I learned of the story of Karl Leisner. I will leave it to interested readers to read the story in greater detail and encourage them to do so. In short, Karl was called to the Priesthood as a young boy. Through a rather bizarre set of random circumstances, this German youth wound up in Dachau concentration camp. Through it all, he served his fellow man and gave thanks for his opportunity to do so. He was secretly ordained a Priest as was his lifelong dream and shortly died thereafter.
Suddenly, walking along a highway truck stop and other "Sucks" I experienced that day such as having to trek 12 km / 7.5 mi father than planned seemed minor.
My Tunes for the Day
I loved this song especially when I needed a reminder that my body was electric. Lana Del Rey's Body Electric served that purpose on many a day of my Camino.
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