Today’s Miles: 5.8
Total Miles: 5,344.7

Vigo, Spain – April 11, 2017

Today’s Miles: 22
Total Miles: 5,366.7

Near Rocamar, Spain – April 12, 2017

I shove my rain pants into the brown box along with two guide books, a spare outlet converter, two St. James shells I picked up on a beach, the three completion certificates for the Camino, a broken watch, and a USB cable. Then I hold my blue down jacket in my hands for a moment like an old friend and shove it in too.

I think of the cold nights with that blue jacket. I think of the hood pulled tight and how I shivered until my body warmed the thin pocket of air trapped by the down. I think of eating chocolate for energy and craving uphill climbs for the heat they generate. I think of how I always felt safe with that jacket around. It would protect me. I close the box and say goodbye to another piece of winter armor.

The summer sun blazes through the Spanish sky. I hide under my straw hat that I almost sent away in Denmark. I spread sunscreen on my face, hands, and neck. It runs away in trickles of sweat and I spread more. My shirt mats to my back. My water bottles empty, fill, and empty again. 

In the grocery stores winter oranges still linger, but spring strawberries are growing cheap. I buy a box of ice cream popsicles and race to eat them before they melt. I pass almost empty beaches, their patio restaurants quiet, their sand ready to be filled with chairs and umbrellas. 

I watch the merciless sun drop into the sea, the air cooling with the fall. The oven off, I walk into the dark, feeling strong again, relishing the night.

Summer isn’t here yet, but it’s coming.