A few days ago, I wrote in a Facebook comment that I am carrying two small stones that I will leave at special places in Spain to spread the light of my beautiful, joyful granddaughter who died violently a few weeks after she turned 3.
“I know where one will go,” I wrote. “I’m waiting for the other spot to announce itself to me.”
It announced itself today in Castroverde, Galicia, Spain — but I almost missed it.
First, I nearly took a slightly different route. Then, I almost walked by until something caught my eye: a small fountain in a compact public square.
The centerpiece of the fountain is a sculpture showing the forms of several small children huddling together holding hands, securing each other under a protective umbrella.
It’s called Fuente de los Niños (Fountain of the Children in English). The sculptor, Primitivo Mallo, left no key to its meaning, leaving the viewer to construct their own narrative.
I left my painted rock on an edge of the fountain. On one side of the rock I had drawn and painted a picture of the ever-present yellow arrows that guide Camino pilgrims on their quest. On the other side, a hashtag: #elaslightrocks.
After Ela died in December 2018, friends all over the world started painting rocks, adding the hashtag and leaving them in special places. The purpose of the hashtag is to spread Ela’s light to anybody who picks up a rock and looks up the hashtag on a social media such as Facebook or Instagram.
Friends also planted trees — again all over the world — as a continuing, living tribute to Ela. The trees are mapped online and inspired an art exhibition called Ela’s Forest that spawned a very special sculpture to be unveiled soon at The AGB Museum in Lakeland, Florida.
I think about Ela every day, but my emotions have been especially intense on this Camino. Sharon and I first learned about the Camino del Norte from two of the many friends of our daughter Laurel who gathered around her from far distances soon after Ela’s death. Part of our 2023 Camino involved processing our grief. I guess that is also part of my current Camino.
This time of year is what Laurel has started calling grief season. Ela was born in November and she was killed in December. We gather yearly to celebrate her birthday, usually with an age-appropriate birthday cake baked by our other daughter, Amelia.
This Nov. 22, Ela turns 11.
Transitions
As I set out on my modest 11-mile walk today, I ran into mi amigo Michael. Of course, I did. I do every day. And I said goodbye.
I met Michael on my second day of the Camino and we have crossed paths daily since then, most nights staying at the same albergue. At least twice, we were the only ones at the albergue. He is always happy to see me and I am happy to see him.
When I saw Michael today, he was waiting for a bus across the street from the bar where I had a cafe con leche and toasted croissant for breakfast. He was taking a bus half-way between where we stayed last night and the city of Lugo and then will walk the rest of the way to Lugo. He’s probably there now. I walked to a magnificent albergue at the half-way point today and arrive in Lugo tomorrow.
Another transition: Although there are still a few strenuous hills to climb in the next few days, the mountains are behind and I’ve entered a land of rolling hills. The walks today and tomorrow are shorter and easier than those I’ve experienced so far and I take a rest day in the historic city of Lugo on Monday before continuing on to Santiago de Compostela.
Not many more photos today. Check out the video at the end. It’s my favorite so far from this trip.
RSS - Posts
Leave a Reply