Good morning, lovely little taza de cafe! It appears that you are as happy to see me as I am to see you!
Good-bye Meseta! Oh how the landscape has changed, and so fast! We are back out in the countryside, have returned to rolling hills, and we now see the mountains in the distance. We walked a little over 14 miles today, which puts us right where we want to be for the mountains tomorrow.
Poco a poco se va lejos. Little by little you go far. My grandfather used this expression all the time. I remember when it was finally, one day, translated for me. It means a lot to me now!
We walk every day, and little-by-little we know we will make it to Santiago. I remember the day we actually looked in a map of Spain and SAW for the first time how far we had gotten! It was so exciting! Otherwise we just get up and walk, around 15 miles every day, following our daily itinerary, but all of a sudden, the end seems near!
Poco a poco se va lejos.
I probably never grieved my Spanish grandfather properly. I was, actually, studying in Spain when he died. He seems to be very present to me in this pilgrimage. Every little older man seems like my grandfather to me. And the girls can tell you, I’m always talking with them! And of course, my surprisingly philosophical Papa’s words are always in my mind!
Poco a poco se va lejos. Bill, we have our routine, and day-by-day the years go by, and now I can reflect on our amazing life together. Thank you for 33 happy, happy years.
Allyson – you and Matthew are forming these amazing little boys, and little by little, day by day, year by year they are enjoying a glorious childhood, and you, motherhood!
Patrick – you and Tonya, with your three and foster-three, I imagine that sometimes it’s minute by minute, hour by hour. But you are a good, fine man with incredible patience.
Melanie – you work so hard, and keep plugging away, credit-by-credit, class-by-class through this Master’s degree and always maintain such a cheerful, joyful spirit. Before you know it, you’ll be done! Poco a poco se va lejos.
Mom and Dad, your appreciation for the simple, your down-to-earthedness and your solid work ethic has been passed down to all of us. Poco a poco se va lejos.
I know now that I very much like having a goal, and accomplishing that goal. I love the challenge of every hill I’ve faced. (My 2 sisters – I know now that we inherited these strong Spanish legs to be able to handle this terrain, I am convinced!)
Highlights: We happened upon a church staffed by Redemptorists, therefore, with devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help! If you know me well, you know that she’s my biggie. I was able to go to confession to a lovely little Spanish priest.
We visited the amazing Cathedral of Astorga.
We passed through a cow farm that had a little calf nursery area!
Mary finally got to eat churros y chocolate!
I mimicked a pilgrim statue drinking from a gourd.
Big day! Long blog.