Day 44 – Muddling Our Way to Melide

We left Palas de Rei late this AM after some

confusion. "I am not going." "I am going." I

am not going." "You can't make me," etc.

In the end, big bad Dave made the trek.

Gorgeous tree with something hanging from it.

The bathroom window of the Camino WC.

(As in water closet.)  "When in Europe..."

Speaking of WC, this one is convenient.

Dave's calf is killing him right now. :(

Our South African lady friends.

The biggest scallop shell on the Camino.

This guy is actually slower than us!

A welcome refreshment station.

Church of Santa Maria of Leborerio

#24. (Santa Maria gets around in these parts.)

We are coming into Melide on this old bridge. 

The Rio Codeseira, just as you enter Melide.

This would make a good 500-piece puzzle.

Crossing the bridge over the Rio Codeseira. 

We have arrived at our destination!

It says, "You are made for greatness."

We believe.

A refreshing sound at the end of our hike.

The Irish group. The one with the open shirt

did the Camino exam on Dave this AM.

This is the bridge over untroubled waters.

We got a stamp for our Compostela at this

 little church in Melide, San Juan de Furelos.

Great couple. Chuck and Paula from Florida

are making it to Santiago faster than we are.

We were blessed to meet up with Marg and

Linda eons ago, when we started the Camino.

 Dinner with Marg and Linda. These were

Galician scallops and tasted fantastic! 

We wish we could have eaten this for dinner, too!

Robert and Jacqueline, the concert pianist.

We've been with them since Cruz de Ferro.

Linda came back from dinner and worked on

Dave's leg, a miracle right here on the Camino.

 Marg and Mike watched to make sure Linda 

applied enough pressure to Dave's very

swollen, black-and-blue calf!

Tomorrow we roll on to Arzua, 8.7 miles.

Prayers for Dave greatly appreciated!

A story from Dave:

The Camino Will Provide

I texted Mike early this morning saying I was going to take a cab today. I didn't get any sleep last night, as I couldn't find a position that didn't cause pain. I was frustrated to say the least and concerned that continuing to walk would cause more damage, perhaps serious damage. I decided to find a doctor for some advice, pain meds, and maybe a shot of cortisone. Just as I was about to leave, I had second thoughts and adjusted my plan. I would first try to walk, then take a cab to a doctor later if I couldn't go on. I hadn't gotten more than a couple of miles when our friends from Ireland caught up to me and asked if they could help. Two of them are doctors, general practitioners, and they stopped to give my leg an exam right there on the trail, answering all my questions and concerns. Cortisone would not be good, walking wouldn't cause more damage but might cause more pain, and the calf pain and bruising were caused by blood draining down from the hamstring tear at the top of my leg. They then gave me a small supply of pain meds and told me what to get at the next pharmacy. We passed them a couple more times during the day, as they had stopped for refreshments. From the distance, their whole group was visibly and audibly cheering me on. Later in the day, we met up with our friends Marg and Linda from New Zealand. Marg has Parkinsons, and Linda is her personal trainer. They have been an inspiration to us. Linda has lots of experience with injury therapy and confirmed everything the doctors had told me earlier in the day. She even offered to work on my leg tonight (which she did, and it helped!), and she has arranged to work on it again tomorrow night, since we are headed for the same city. 

During those restless hours of pain last night, I was convinced I needed to take a cab and find a doctor to help me. In the morning, I felt so uncertain about what to do. But I decided to trust the Camino, and there I found all that I needed. Blessings came in the form of friends, which is how God's help usually comes. It has been said about life's trials and experiences, "I didn't say it would be easy; I only said it would be worth it." How true!

Dave's PT

A story from Mike:

Today has been a positive day, especially coming off the departure from Sarria. Even Brierly's book about the Camino warns us about the change of ambience the Camino undergoes from Sarria to Santiago. The first day out of Sarria, Dave and I ran into large groups of pilgrims, mostly from high schools in the Madrid area. Additional groups came from other countries: 18 women from South Africa, for instance, and smaller groups like our six buddies from Ireland that seem to wave to us from every bar we pass. My frustration was that the newer, larger groups were loud and noisy, changing the feeling of the Camino and almost showing a lack of respect for the nature and the reverence developed over many days on The Way. 

I am learning, as in life, that it is the people who make the Camino exceptionally wonderful. Yesterday and today completely reversed my disgruntled feelings as we left Sarria. I attribute this reversal to the relationships with individuals and groups that we have formed over the last several days and weeks. For example, we ran into Robert and Jacqueline in Melide. (You may remember them from a couple of weeks ago.) They are the pair from New Mexico: she a concert pianist, he an "apprecianado" of concert pianists...or at least, of his concert pianist. We initially bonded because of the challenges with our bodies. Jackie had a horribly bad knee and felt deeply concerned that she would not complete the Camino. One night, unable to find an albergue, she broke down in tears for fear of not attaining her goal of walking into Santiago de Compostela. After meeting with the doctor and resting a few days, her knee was well enough to continue. Jackie overcame great challenges personally and physically to move on and accomplish her goal.  Another example would be Marg and Linda from New Zealand, the ones we met in Los Arcos. You might recall that Marg has suffered from Parkinson's disease for over ten years. After falling in Burgos, she struggled with major bruises and then serious blisters, some of which still exist. She and her partner laid out for some time to recover and are now back on the Camino, the end in sight.

An example much closer to home is Dave, my trail partner on the Camino. For the last three weeks his hamstring has become increasingly painful. It appears he may have pulled that muscle as the injury has now radiated to his calf, making it extremely painful to walk. This morning before we met for breakfast, Dave texted that he was going to catch a cab to Santiago and meet with a doctor to see if his problem could be treated. When I got down for breakfast, he informed me that he was walking to Melide after all, but that he would be moving slowly. I was excited he had decided to walk and more than willing to travel at any pace he wanted. About half an hour out of Palas de Rei, we were overtaken by our fun-loving Irish friends, three couples we have thoroughly enjoyed as we joked back and forth along the way. (Two of them are the doctors that prescribed electrolytes for Dave yesterday.) Being aware of Dave's situation, they actually stopped to give him a physical and evaluate his leg and calf. They prescribed another pain medication and indicated that there was nothing he could really do for it, but that walking on the leg would not cause further damage. It was as if Dave had gone to Santiago for a doctor's opinion after all, another little miracle of the Camino––a tender mercy, not a coincidence. Dave's leg is not doing better yet. It was not easy at all for him to walk into Melide today, but he has great inner strength and is now 15 kilometers closer to his goal.

All of these are but small examples of many challenges facing the pilgrims who decide to walk the Camino. It is humbling to be with people who show such strength and fortitude as they overcome their challenges and accomplish their goals. We can and do learn so much about life and living on the Camino.

Dave's docs.

Click below to support mental health and

suicide prevention, the causes Mike and Dave

are championing with their walk.