NB: I have not been able to upload pictures for this entry due to the signal strength I have here. Will do so once I reach Salamanca.
Fuenterroble de Salvatierra.
Yesterday was a good day to walk. The rain was kind and waited until myself and a fellow pilgrim got into our hostel before pouring down. The Albergue has been so pleasant and relaxing that I've decided to rest here for an extra day before continuing to Salamanca.
Now, let me tell you about the encounter I had with a woman called Lola, the proprietress of 'Casa Rural Calzada Romana'.
I was just about to leave a little pueblo called 'La Calzada de Béjar' to continue the Camino when I stopped at little quaint house. It seemed like a private pilgrim hostel and I wanted to ask for a stamp in my pilgrim's card to show I had passed through the town.
And then we sat, and we talked, and we talked some more - about the Camino and disconnecting from routine, about her three kids who all studied theology and are more well versed than her in understanding the scriptures, about her dream to love in a rustic house like hers and keep busy with painting, writing, reading, handiworks and much more.
And before I left, she said a prayer for me for my journey to Compostela - but not before she expressed a little about the bifurcation between interpreting the Bible as fact or as an allegory - or as both.
I walked out of Lola's place feeling nostalgic and strangely light - it was the feeling I remember having going to church as a child to meet with friends at Catechism, talk about cartoons and video games, and run around the church compound while waiting for our parents as they chat with each other.
There was a horse that was kind enough to let me share this feeling I had with it. And shortly after that moment, I returned again to that first question I had before beginning this journey - Why am I doing the Camino? - and the answer that came was this:
I am doing the Camino to find Freedom; first from mySelf, and then, for myself. The reason I am disconnecting is to return with a deeper connection to everyone around me, because the Camino will end and Life will continue. This Camino - the continuous journey of living Life - is what I am (and have been) walking for.
Compostela is still far away. Who knows what answers may come in the meantime.
Thank you Lola.
Thank you Horse.
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