I sit on a rock bed of trail mix
The various shaped pebbles
Poke against my butt while
Melodious sounds
Play in tune
With the continuous roar of
The ocean
Crashing in peaceful chaos.
A lull passed through our conversation. I looked at my clock, it was already 4PM. I alerted the others before deciding to pack up our things and check in to the albergue.
We walked off the beach and back up the cobblestone hill. The small albergue rested on a quiet street looking over the surrounding rolling green hills. Pilgrims sat on the porch, an older woman in the doorway.
“There’s only room for one more,” the woman said. Maddie, Aiden, and I shot each other disappointed glances. We’d indulged in too much beach fun. Julie and Elena had already checked in, so it was up to us to decide split or stick together. But then, our hippy friend made a kind offer.
“It’s a beautiful night, you can use my tent and sleeping bag if you’d like,” Julie offered.
I looked at the others. Sleeping on the beach? I was sold. Then another offer.
“You’re welcome to join us for dinner as well,” said the hospitalare. We gladly accepted, and enjoyed and huddled around a large round wooden table. We went around introducing ourselves and saying where we were from, France, Luxembourg, Spain, Germany, Russia, Slovenia. The hospitalare was from Switzerland, and sat across from her assistant, Elena from Spain. She seemed familiar, but I couldn’t think of why.
We enjoyed a healthy dinner. First, homemade hummus and bread along with a fresh cabbage and lettuce salad tossed with a vinaigrette dressing. Fresh handpicked edible flowers topped the salad and hummus, their bright supple petals bursting with orange and purple color. A rhubarb zucchini casserole followed, finished with a dessert of arroz con leche, rice with milk, cinnamon and lemon. All was homemade by Elena from Spain in this small donativo albergue.
“You look familiar,” Aiden said, addressing the hospitalare.
“Well of course,” the old lady with a lump on her forehead responded, “we saw you in Ribadesalla, and earlier in town today,” she replied nonchalantly, smiling. The Camino is full of familiar faces.
Sufficiently full, shocked and grateful for our numerous encounters with such a generous woman, and generally thankful for good healthy food, Aiden and I offered to clean up and wash dishes. I scrubbed and Aiden dried. Outside the kitchen window, we could see the amber yellow light of the sun begin to dip closer to the horizon. The old woman with the lump on her forehead approached.
“You’re finished now. Please go and watch the sunset. Elena will show you where you can setup the tent,” she said.
Aiden and I followed Elena down the cobblestone hill, back to the sandy dunes of the coastline. The sun was kissing the hills now, soaking their dark green limbs in a warm orange bath. Elena smoked another hand rolled cigarette as we watched.
Sitting on a beach
A dim glow illuminates white paper
White sand
Formed into valleys
Of dark ridges.
The roar.
The rumble and the tumble
The crash and the bang
Merge into sweet serenity.
Scarlet orange light fades
From distant hiltops
Soon to be explored.
Salt fills the cool night air
And grass escapes
From sandy dunes.
Dark clouds accompany the calm skies
While stars shine light,
Some fresh some stale
Fading and gleaming.
Sand sticks to my skin
A rough paste
It slips through my toes
Polishing it’s surface
As it’s done to so many
And the waves roar.
The roar.
The rumble and the tumble
The crash and the bang
Merge into sweet serenity.
Darkness. I pulled out my headlamp to illuminate a path as Elena navigated through the grass dunes, leading us to a grassy knoll elevated just above the sand and looking over the sprawling sea.
We thanked her for her guidance and company before she walked back up the cobblestone hill. I set up a friends tent, rolled out another friends sleeping bag, and crawled in beside another friend. Laying on the bumpy ground of the grassy dune, I listened to the crash of the waves. I felt perfectly comfortable and at home.
