3. October 2011
As the day wore on and it got hotter, the storming began. Not the rain kind. The kind where everyone’s sniping about one another, wanting others to back off, or simply being crabby about life in general.
Tending to Blisters
This day’s hard. Lots of ascents and descents, a little less scenic and a lot more exhausting. Blisters are forming on top of blisters and everyone’s a little less enthusiastic about the walk. The group’s pace slowed so much that restaurants were closed by the time we were through for the day. No post-walk lunch to be had. An impromptu picnic made of items from the grocery store helped us rally for a bit, but when we got to the hotel, the group split up. Everyone went off in their separate corners for alone time and rest. Hopefully, a little distance to relieve the tension will do everyone a world of good.
That said, Susan and I keep reminding the group that pushing away the “bad” emotions (sad, mad, scared and all the gradations thereof) is just postponing the inevitable. The irony of it is that we’re basically avoiding a phenomenon that lasts about 90 seconds. Yup – according to brain scientists, emotions’ intensity (both the “good” and “bad” kinds) lasts 90 seconds. Then there’s a lessening. Another wave may come quickly, but what the hell’s so bad about feeling something for 90 seconds?
The Camino is doing its part, too, to help us just ditch crap and feel stuff. When you’re pushing your body to its limits and spending hours in nature, there’s less of a need to hide and shove stuff away. I can’t help but think how wonderful it would be if we’d all just be a lot more honest, a lot more often.
