the EASY Camino... a brief recap

So, I shared the before of the Camino and figured I should share at least a few little thoughts about it on the other side.

There is so much I could say, but it was VERY VERY fun! 55 high school students have a ton of energy, but these particular ones were incredible.

Some of my highlights...

... the day I had the stomach flu (not being sick), experiencing everyone's care and love... having them carry my burdens for the day as they let me sleep, brought me Aquarius (Spain's version of Gatorade), fruit, bread, etc., and were super attentive and sweet.

... taking care of peoples' feet - from blisters to cuts to rashes, etc.,

... walking into Santiago

... hearing the kids share how God was working in their lives... one guy crying as he decided to forgive his abusive day... another guy sharing how he had chosen to trust God to overcome some fears and allow people into his life... a girl sharing how she now knew that God was really real... another girl talking of how she was choosing to now see herself the way God sees her... and many more

... hugs and kisses from the kids

... walking in beautiful NW Spain -- green, hills, little creeks, trees and forest...

... some good time with some good friends, Marc & Eva & Melissa & Marian & some new friends Natalie & co...

... realizing that all of my present belongings fit in a backpack on my back

... listening to some of the guys brag about how easy it was and how many backpacks they had carried that day, or showing the huge stone they had carried, or trying to outdo one another in being the greatest servant of others... the testosterone was running high, but i didn't mind being taken care of

... remembering memories from past Caminos -- times with the Lord, things I learned, people I walked with, friends, etc.,

... enjoying clean clothes, a WARM shower, and a REAL bed upon arriving to Santiago

Some of the funnier/less than glamerous parts of the camino...

... the vast quantity of cow poop we walked over and through

... wearing two pairs of clothes for 10 days (washing them of course from time to time)

... throwing up all night in an extremely stinky bathroom and having the stomach flu

... not being able to walk one of the days due to the fact that I couldn't keep anything down and was a bit weak

... looking at some of the very sad feet (one girl got 18 blisters the first day, don't ask me how) and not being able to do much more than ease the pain and give some advice

... 10 days of cold, sometimes extremely freezing showers and most the time group showers

Note: By the way, EASY doesn't really mean "easy". We did carry all our luggage on our backs for 8 days and we did camp out almost the whole way and we did walk somewhere between 20 and 30+ kilometers a day, so it wasn't exactly the "easy" route. EASY stands for European All Staff Youth. It began as staff kids from Western Europe and now is them plus their friends and many others.