Day 44 – Cacabelos to Villafranca del Bierzo – 9.5 km
As I was leaving Cacabelos this afternoon I took a short
detour, following the commotion to the town square. What I discovered was an
abundance of small children getting ready to run a 20-meter dash.
Kids bring so much joy to the world! And Spain has been no
different.
I was reminded of the twin boys Randy and I met in Estella.
Their dad told us to speak English to them because they were learning Spanish,
Basque, and English in their kindergarten class. They were fascinated by our
placemats (which only pilgrims get) and our accents.
And I thought of the young girls in Espinal who were
thrilled when we asked them to stamp our pilgrims passports. (I blame them for
our enthusiasm to get anyone and everyone to stamp our passports from there on
after!)
I remembered the groups of teenagers who “interviewed” us in
Pamplona and Burgos, videotaping our conversations for their English classes.
And of course I thought of my nieces and nephew back home.
How a few years ago Tessa, Kaylee, Tysen, and Kenzi would have held hands as
they ran their race. How Riley would be too curious about what was ahead to wait for the starting
bell. And how Kasen would do a victory dance as soon as he crossed the finish
line. I can’t wait to hug them all!
But in the meantime I’m enjoying the many kids that continue
to cross my path!
After getting settled into an albergue in Villafranca del
Bierzo, I had dinner with two kids who wanted to practice their English
pronunciation. They also helped the adults around the table understand each
other, translating various English, Spanish, and French words so we all knew
what we were talking about!
And I talked to Merena (age 4 ½) and her family about
Merena’s first Camino. This is her dad’s sixth Camino and her mom’s second. Dad
is riding a bike, with Merena in a cart on the back (and only a coloring book
to entertain her!), while Mom is walking. They started in Leon where they live
and where he works in the audio-visual department at the University. He is recording the journey for Merena, so she will remember this journey and be able to share it with other families considering the trip.
They will
do a week long stretch now and another in the summer in order to get from Leon
to Santiago. Dad said when Merena is old enough (maybe 8), they will think about
visiting California, where they can have lots more outdoor adventures!
It is really fun to see so many families enjoying the
Camino, letting the kids teach us, and speaking the universal
language of smiles!
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