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Day 19
Today, the fields not only rang with cowbells but – a first for me – a whole herd of horses joined in the clamourous fun! Which brought this poem to mind, written in late 2017 when we were staying in a monastery in Switzerland, awaiting our US visas.

The Bells of Ralligen

The clanging of bells filled the air and brought my heart to attention:
“this is it”, they were singing,
“this is the moment,
here you are and we are too:
be happy with us, praise be! “

It was early morning,
no change of lightness yet visible in the cloudy sky over the lake, beyond the mountains,
but the bells were urging
the waking of the dawn,
the bells were calling
all ears that could hear,
the bells were summoning life
out of the noone-nowhere-nothing
of the long dark night.

When the church tower fills with the dingdangdong of Sunday beckoning
there are some few minutes of noise,
then a sudden return to emptiness.

But the cows on the hillside persist, persist,
insist,
that we attend
to grace.

Asturias is much more rural than Basque country and Cantabria, and I was walking on country paths nearly all day. Really fun to leave the hostel with John from Holland (and, fyi Dad, he doesn't call it The Netherlands, because for him it's the same thing; but perhaps that’s because he is actually from Holland), at a cracking pace and with easy conversation all the way to Llanes, the first 7 miles of the day. It's a lovely little town, perhaps my favourite so far.
I then sent a box of things home from the post office, relieving myself of about 1kg of kit: just an accumulation of little things, my toilet bag, and one fleece. I kept the new jacket I bought last week, and reckon that if I get cold I can now wear everything I have with me, layered up, and feel confident it's enough.
It feels such a privilege and a freedom to walk though idyllic coastal countryside on a clear and warm day, on my own, mile after mile, just taking in the animals, plants, clouds, winds, paths, villages, occasional people ...

I'm very happy.

'Collected' a whole lot more flowers today ... do you remember those 'I spy' books back in the day? Tick off each thing when you see it? I can't imagine there are many more flowers in northern Spain than I've spotted so far!
Lesley, I have MULTIPLES of 17 flowers on my list. You're the only guesser so far but you're waaaaay off! Can't offer the prize for something so off-beam. Any other guesses?

I'm not thinking all that much, or at least only occasionally thinking about something particular and pursuing an idea. It's been a lot about how I relate to myself and to the world, and to people, about me, noticing how defendedly I've held my heart, (perhaps like any or all of us), and how I don't need that survival mechanism any more. Perhaps. Not sure I can say much more about that right now, as 20 miles is a lot to walk and I'm pretty worn out. I think you'll have to meet me for coffee once I'm home again to ask me what's been going on.

Booked a hotel room because I couldn't find a hostel where I wanted to be, and paid a little more for a bathtub: BLISSSSSSSSS!Читать далее