More Than You Can Imagine!

This weekend, I have the privilege of speaking at a local women's retreat about the unfathomable nature of the glory of God.  I posted this piece four years ago but decided to re-post to remind me to that God, my Father, is truly more than I can imagine!

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine. According to his power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen!”
Ephesians 3:20-21

Last summer my family hiked the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain.  (You can read about our adventures starting here)  Many of the cities we traversed had massive, old cathedrals at their centers.  These ornate, burgeoning structures were literally awe-inspiring.  It was not difficult to see what had captured the imaginations of these ancient artisans; on every available edifice you could find paintings of creation, biblical battles, and Mary the mother of Jesus.  And in numerous alcoves along these massive walls stood statues depicting the apostles, the prophets, and Jesus Himself in various scenes.  All one had to do was look upward towards the ceiling to see the entire story of the Bible unfolding before their eyes. It was if the brushstrokes of the painters purposed to draw your eyes heavenward in reverence.  The story of God captivated these devout people of old.  Does it still capture us today?

I don’t think so.

I think, today, that we are wowed by the glitz and the glare and the general glamour of everything that sparkles.  The story of God has been put on the shelf.

But, we get excited about CrossFit.

And March Madness.

And politics. Especially when an election year is approaching.

We are passionate about vaccinations. Or lack of them.

And GMOs.

And homeschooling.

And public schooling.

And grass fed beef.

We consume ourselves with perfect parties for our one year olds.

And social media.

And furniture from IKEA.

But we are no longer awed by THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE WHO SPOKE EVERYTHING INTO BEING.

Does this seem strange to you?

The Westminster Catechism can assist us with this.  It asks the question, “What is chief end of man? (or in today's language, "What is our purpose?) And to help us, it also answers and tells us, “To glorify God and enjoy him forever.”

So…if we are supposed to be glorifying God, but yet we are fascinated with everything but God and, in fact, we think that God is outdated, archaic, even distant, then we are neither ENJOYING HIM nor GLORIFYING HIM.

That means we are not fulfilling our purpose.  Do you understand the problem here? The problem is that WE ARE WASTING OUR TIME!

In Romans 1:21, Paul says, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”  Do you see the irony?  This is like us.  We know God.  We don’t glorify him when our minds are occupied with everything but him.  We don’t give thanks to him because we don’t meditate on the grace he has given.

We need to stop.  We just need to STOP.  And we need to look long and lovingly on the majesty of God.  We become what we behold.  I don’t want my thinking to be futile or my heart to be darkened by distraction.  I want to behold the holiness of my Savior. And I want to become like him.

The focal point of our interests has become OURSELVES--selfie anyone?—but we need to focus on the One that actually is God, not on those things that have become our “gods”.  When we place anything in the spot that God should inhabit, that thing is our idol.  God commands we aren’t to have any of those…but I do, don’t you?  Because I get wrapped up in the here and now and forget that it’s only a vapor.  But what I really need to do is look up, like our fathers of old, and remember that the old, old story is not about me.

IT’S REALLY ALL ABOUT HIM.

Friends, please listen.  I plead.  It’s foolish to run after other fulfillment.  God knows what is best for us.  It’s Himself.  And He’s already given everything we need.  Let’s be captivated by his lavish love and caught up in his grace. 

He is able to do more than we can ask or imagine.  He’s already done it.  It’s called salvation—when he took our sin and gave us his righteousness—remember? 

Think about it. Let it capture your imagination.

It’s awesome. And mind blowing.

He’s just that kind of God.

GET EXCITED!


Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 
Colossians 3:2

Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. 

Psalm 84:10

5 Reasons Coffee Has Made Me a Better Person

Ok.  This has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas (other than the fact that I adore the white chocolate peppermint coffee blend that I purchased for myself as a pre-holiday treat), but seeing that I only wrote in my blog eight times this whole year, I thought I would do what any respectable blogger would do and write at least four more times before year’s end to make it look as if I had written at least once a month.  And, try as I might to come up with something poignant about the real meaning of Christmas, I kept getting stuck on things that sounded like they came from a 1980s Hallmark made-for-TV movie and not from the depths of my heart.  So…I decided to write about coffee.  Make sense?

First, the back-story:  I started drinking coffee a year and a half ago while in Spain.  Previous to that, the last coffee I had tasted was something my mom offered me in a Styrofoam cup with lipstick stains after we had helped some friends move when I was seven.  That experience left me with a disgusting aftertaste—actually and figuratively.  I never wanted to drink the demon liquid again; I couldn’t believe people actually craved it.  In fact, when I grocery shopped, I would often skip the coffee aisle because I hated the smell. 

But the summer before last, when we had traveled to Europe to hike the Camino de Santiago (wanna know more about that?  Start here), the rest of the family would hit up little coffee “bars” in the morning and order a café con leche and a giant chocolate croissant, and I would just sit, soberly, eating my giant chocolate croissant by itself.  I felt left out of the common experience.  And occasionally, I needed some unmentionable digestive processes to occur before I put in a 20 mile day of hiking and before civilized bathrooms were no longer available (I know what you are saying, “She never seemed to mind going in the woods before,” and you are right. But what you don’t understand about the Camino is that it is a very urban trail, highly traveled by other “pilgrims” who don’t take kindly to seeing someone squatting behind a building in the quaint villages along the way. In my ignorance, I didn’t know that coffee did that sort of thing, but, by golly, it does!) So, seeing that 40 years had passed since my last sip of Joe, and deciding that my taste buds had probably matured by now, I chose to be a certified grown-up and try it. On my first foray into the caffeinated world, I bravely loaded up my very own café con leche with lots of sugar and sipped…cautiously.  And because I had decided to change my mind about its abhorrence, it now seemed to have this mystical quality about it that made me feel mature and free and clean (if you know what I mean).  And I didn’t hate it…that much.  Now, upon ingestion, my chocolate croissant had a friend, my colon was rejoicing, and I had started to feel like part of the gang.  I even told my family, “ Coffee is going to transform my life!” That was just the beginning of a beautiful friendship.  And like any friendship of value, coffee has made me better.  Here are five reasons why:

  

5 Reasons Coffee Has Made Me a Better Person

1.  Coffee has made me more fun.  Because I am now a real adult, I can confidently walk into any coffee shop and order a Cappuccino or a Latte or an Americano with room for cream without fear.  I understand most of the lingo—the blends and beans and brewing methods and steamed milk and espresso—not EXpresso—and I can sit across from anyone, holding my warm drink in my cold hands and chat about light-hearted things instead of lamely drinking an iced tea in the dead of winter.  I now smile as I walk through the coffee aisle and I don’t plug my nose quite as much.  And I let myself get fun coffee drinks on Fridays because Fridays make me happy.  In general, I am less stuffy and more cheerful because I have found a warm, gentle friend in coffee.

2.  Coffee has allowed me to form an alliance with a new drink.  Diet Coke used to be my beverage of choice (read about my guilty conscience), but no longer does this tumor-enhancing drink—the name given it by my darling children—captivate me.  Now that I have discovered the miraculous qualities of this natural substance, the fake stuff doesn’t stand a chance.  Coffee seems to line up with the rest of my life since I can pronounce everything in the ingredients list: /ˈkɑː.fi/ bins/.

3.  Coffee has made me appreciate my morning-by-fireplace-posting-sunrise-pictures-on-Instagram routine.  I can now sit happily in my polka-dotted chair admiring my just-taken-that-morning pictures while sipping on a soul-warming beverage.  I look forward to my coffee/chocolate animal cracker routine daily.  It gives me joy.  Joy makes me more fun (see point #1 above). 

4.  Coffee has given me a fondness for beautiful, ergonomically correct mugs.  Lately, I have been sipping my morning brew out of a lovely, purple-flowered china cup that fits my hand perfectly.  Sometimes mugs are too heavy or too masculine, but this cup is like baby bear’s bed…it is just right.  I wash it out each morning and put it by the sink so I can look forward to the next morning when we can enjoy each other’s company.

5.  Coffee has allowed me to enter into a whole new subculture.  Although I still don’t love the taste of coffee, I really like the idea of coffee.  And a lot of half and half helps with that.  I delight in all of the names and cute little pictures on the coffee packages, and all the creative, very caloric ways one can dress up a decidedly boring drink. I think it is fun that I can make this little treat in the comfort of my own home at any time of the day.  Sometimes, when I make it at three in the afternoon, and I put a little chocolate syrup in the bottom, I feel like maybe I am getting away with something.  And sometimes feeling sneaky is good.  Sometimes feeling sneaky makes me more fun and less pragmatic.  Because, really, I am pretty boring.  But now, not so much because I have found a friend in coffee.  Can I hear an “Amen”?!

So that’s it folks.  Coffee has lots of perks. Here’s to the java for jump-starting my joy in the daily grind of life. 

No beans about it, the brew just makes me better. 

More Than You Can Imagine

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine. According to his power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen!”
Ephesians 3:20-21

Last summer my family hiked the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain.  (You can read about our adventures starting here).  Many of the cities we traversed had massive, old cathedrals at their centers.  These ornate, burgeoning structures were literally awe-inspiring.  It was not difficult to see what had captured the imaginations of these ancient artisans; on every available edifice you could find paintings of creation, biblical battles, and Mary the mother of Jesus.  And in numerous alcoves along these massive walls stood statues depicting the apostles, the prophets, and Jesus Himself in various scenes.  All one had to do was look upward towards the ceiling to see the entire story of the Bible unfolding before their eyes. It was if the brushstrokes of the painters purposed to draw your eyes heavenward in reverence.  The story of God captivated these devout people of old.  Does it still capture us today?

I don’t think so.

I think, today, that we are wowed by the glitz and the glare and the general glamour of everything that sparkles.  The story of God has been put on the shelf.

But, we get excited about CrossFit.

And March Madness.

And politics. Especially when an election year is approaching.

We are passionate about vaccinations. Or lack of them.

And GMOs.

And homeschooling.

And public schooling.

And grass fed beef.

We consume ourselves with perfect parties for our one year olds.

And social media.

And furniture from IKEA.

But we are no longer awed by THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE WHO SPOKE EVERYTHING INTO BEING.

Does this seem strange to you?

The Westminster Catechism can assist us with this.  It asks the question, “What is chief end of man? (or in today's language, "What is our purpose?) And to help us, it also answers and tells us, “To glorify God and enjoy him forever.”

So…if we are supposed to be glorifying God, but yet we are fascinated with everything but God and, in fact, we think that God is outdated, archaic, even distant, then we are neither ENJOYING HIM nor GLORIFYING HIM.

That means we are not fulfilling our purpose.  Do you understand the problem here? The problem is that WE ARE WASTING OUR TIME!

In Romans 1:21, Paul says, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”  Do you see the irony?  This is like us.  We know God.  We don’t glorify him when our minds are occupied with everything but him.  We don’t give thanks to him because we don’t meditate on the grace he has given.

We need to stop.  We just need to STOP.  And we need to look long and lovingly on the majesty of God.  We become what we behold.  I don’t want my thinking to be futile or my heart to be darkened by distraction.  I want to behold the holiness of my Savior. And I want to become like him.

The focal point of our interests has become OURSELVES--selfie anyone?—but we need to focus on the One that actually is God, not on those things that have become our “gods”.  When we place anything in the spot that God should inhabit, that thing is our idol.  God commands we aren’t to have any of those…but I do, don’t you?  Because I get wrapped up in the here and now and forget that it’s only a vapor.  But what I really need to do is look up, like our fathers of old, and remember that the old, old story is not about me.

IT’S REALLY ALL ABOUT HIM.

Friends, please listen.  I plead.  It’s foolish to run after other fulfillment.  God knows what is best for us.  It’s Himself.  And He’s already given everything we need.  Let’s be captivated by his lavish love and caught up in his grace. 

He is able to do more than we can ask or imagine.  He’s already done it.  It’s called salvation—when he took our sin and gave us his righteousness—remember? 

Think about it. Let it capture your imagination.

It’s awesome. And mind blowing.

He’s just that kind of God.

GET EXCITED!


Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 
Colossians 3:2

Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. 

Psalm 84:10

Headlamp

This summer, while hiking in Spain, we would often get up at the crack of dawn and get out on the trail.  We did this so that we could get the majority of our miles in before the heat of the afternoon sun.  The only problem with this early departure time was the darkness.  So, on these dark mornings, at least one of us wore a headlamp to illuminate our way. 

If you’ve never worn a headlamp, you may not know that it’s output is relatively small.  Unlike a floodlight, which illuminates for what seems like miles, a headlamp only provides enough light for one to see the next few steps.  Because of this, when we were on the trail, it was important for us to stay close to the light source so we could find our way. 

I think this is the same way God leads his children. He doesn’t illuminate our path with stadium-style lighting; rather, the light he allows is more like a headlamp…so we can only see our next step, then our next, then our next. 

AW Tozer says, "Our insistence upon seeing ahead is natural enough, but it is a real hindrance to our spiritual progress. God has charged Himself with full responsibility for our eternal happiness and stands ready to take over the management of our lives the moment we turn in faith to Him …. "

Maybe this is why God only shows us the very next step.  He does this so we understand our need for His leadership.  If our entire future was illuminated before us, we might decide to use our faulty human reasoning to alter events we think unnecessary.  We might decide that suffering is just too hard. Or we might become fearful and decide He isn’t good.

But He is good.  He’s always good.  And in His infinite goodness and wisdom, He has a plan for our lives—a plan for eternal contentment and supreme satisfaction.  A plan that He can only show us one step at a time. He has a plan to make us more like His Son; He does this by leading us gently, sometimes slowly, but always completely faithfully. 

As we venture into our unpredictable days, transitions and adjustments will abound.  Sometimes the trail will seem unfamiliar, the road too rocky, the darkness too great.  And that, my friend, is when we will need to remember to strap on our headlamps and continue trudging on.

He is the Leader.  We must stay close--and follow step…by step…by step. 

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

John 8:12

Pilgrim's Progress # 7: For (preferably non-Spanish speaking) Women Only!

Hello ladies.  Can I talk to about something that happened to me while traveling in a foreign country recently?

Ok.  Thanks.

With all the hype regarding tampon commercials on Facebook these days, (If you haven’t seen them, watch this one. You will laugh out loud), I thought I could safely put this out there (and be pretty sure that the guys would have stopped reading by now).

Imagine that you are hiking in Spain and your ‘monthly visitor’ arrives a bit early.  This is not an emergency as you do have a few days' supply of feminine products in your pack.  But as those items run out, you find yourself needing to do a little shopping at the dollar-store-like tienda across the street from your pension.  And because you don’t know the language, you go to the section with items that are obviously for this purpose and quickly pick out a cushy pink package that seems to have some type of absorbency scale on the side.  And after you carry this package (luckily, it was in a bag—which I had to buy—I think—or maybe they just provided it because they were embarrassed for me—I couldn’t really understand the question asked.  I just answered “si” and they stuck it in a sack) back to the room you are sharing with the REST OF YOUR FAMILY, you nonchalantly pull out one cutely wrapped tri-folded item and find it to be especially large; in fact, not only are these things literally MAXI pads, they are shaped like little boats—think ‘small canoe’. Nothing was getting through those babies. 

Got that image in your head? Let me tell you, girlfriend, the whole experience was like wearing diapers all over again…with the crinkle, crinkle sound thrown in just to make it fun.

Only later, as one of my Spanish speaking daughters (who may or may not have needed to steal some of my mucho maxis) commented that I had not actually purchased feminine pads. My self-stick wearable schooners were, in reality, bladder control pads (you must understand, pad in Spanish is compresa and I assumed all compresas were for the big M—my bad—or my pad—whichever you like better). I was, however, grateful that I was successful in identifying and purchasing my other necessary items, as tampon in Spanish means inkpad (according to one disputable internet site. Hey, it's probably totally wrong, but let's go with it because it's funny). Talk about making it obvious that it’s your time of the month.

So there you go. More than you wanted to know about the flow of events that cycled through our time on the Spanish Camino—did you see what I did there?

Moral of the story:  When Aunt Flo visits you in Spain and you have to buy items to appease her, steer clear of the compresas and go straight for the inkpads.

And that’s the end.

Period.

Pilgrim's Progress #6: Our Camino in a (very large) Nutshell!

Hey Y’all!  We’re back and it was AWESOME.  Super awesome…which I guess is a word only Americans use since people identified us as such when we spoke it.  Anyway, how does one capture such an incredible trip in one blog post?  Umm, I’m not really sure, but I’ll give it the old college try.

I had hoped to update you more frequently when we were actually on the Camino but found proper Internet connections lacking.  The one time I did find a reliable and available computer, I deposited my Euros in the coin slot in exchange for 20 minutes of it's time and spent 18 ½ of those minutes trying to translate blogger into English (not an easy task) since I can’t actually speak Spanish.  I also found it rather tedious to type on my phone’s tiny little keyboard and felt rather conspicuous speaking into Google voice to record a blog.  The one time I did record my blog via voice, I was on the steps of our Albergue while an elderly French couple simultaneously smoked cigarettes and hung out their freshly washed underwear on the outdoor clothesline (and probably discussed my strange behavior in a foreign tongue).  So here’s a little really long snapshot of our recent European Adventure:

After our first five days in Rome, where Brent and I celebrated our 25^th anniversary and where I learned to drink cappuccino (I have never before drunk coffee and now I feel like a real grown-up!) and eat pistachio pastries, we headed to Madrid, Spain.

This could transform my life!

From Madrid, we took a train and then a taxi (think “worst carnival ride of my life” to envision the latter) to St. Jean Pied de Port, France (I know, confusing) so we could begin our Camino pilgrimage at the traditional starting point. After stopping at the Pilgrim’s Office and getting our very first sello, or stamp, on our Pilgrim’s Credencial , we each picked a scallop shell from the box (the traditional sign of the Camino Pilgrim) at the sign-in table and followed the directions given us to find our very first Albergue.  After finding our lodging and eating our first “Pilgrim’s Meal”(which always included  wine, naturally), we went shopping at the little village shops for the next day’s breakfast which we would eat early in the morning in the Albergue’s communal kitchen.  

My completed Credencial del Peregrino showing stamps from all the albergues

The path on the first day started immediately climbing through the Pyrenees Mountains, and we passed hundreds of wooly mountain goats, bleating sheep, and big horses roaming in the adjoining countryside.  Most of this livestock wore large cowbells that dangled under their chins and made a lazy lolling sound as they walked.  It was like being in a really long hot race with animals cheering you on.

Shay, the horse whisperer, entices the animals to come toward her

The trail was very easy to follow because of frequent yellow arrows painted on the roads and trees and markers that looked like this:

After leaving at 6:30 am that first day, we stopped to rest after about two hours and ordered Café con Leche (coffee with milk) and chocolate pastries at a little bar (coffee shop) along the way (this became our very anticipated pattern everyday thereafter). We then put our packs on again and trekked until lunchtime where we munched on bread, cheese, and fruit (this too became our habit).  After lunch, we hiked a couple more hours and finally reached Roncesvalles, Spain, our stopping point for the day.  In Roncesvalles (which we called Rocky Village because we couldn’t pronounce it correctly), we stayed in the public Albergue and got our first taste of the scantily clad French men which would characterize the clientele in many of our future abodes.

Days 2-20 are really just some version of Day 1, so I will just give you a general overview of our very simple and predictable days:

5:30 am—get up, pack up belongings, eat a meager breakfast of bread and fruit and maybe Nutella if you are lucky, brush your teeth if you are Mom and Dad (I’m pretty sure the kids skipped this).

How do I love thee?  Let me count the ways

6:00 am—on the trail.  Most pilgrims were up and at 'em by this time so they could be done by early afternoon and beat the heat.

We got to see the Spanish moon on many mornings

8:30 am—walk through a tiny little sleepy village and find the only bar that is open at this early (for Spain) hour.  Order cinco Café con Leche, dos or tres chocolate croissants, and dos Spanish tortillas (a kind of quiche type item with eggs and potatoes—often served cold)

We often walked through livestock

and through vineyards

One of our many morning coffee stops

9:00 am—begin walking again, pass through rural Spanish villages every two hours or so.  All the villages had a church of some kind and a public fountain where we could fill our water bottles.  This meant a fresh water supply was readily available most of the time.

Crossing over a medieval bridge

See our scallop shells?

We passed through the large city of Pamplona where Shay became a fierce bullfighter

11:30 am—walk through Spanish village and find a supermercado in which we could buy simple provisions for lunch.  Often we would have to go to the fruta store to buy fruits and vegetables, the panderia to buy bread, and another shop to buy queso, yogur, and chorizo.  We found that fruits, vegetables, bread and cheese were cheap, while meat was expensive, so we ate many cheese and vegetable sandwiches on our lunch stops in parks or along rivers.  We also fell in love with Prince cookies and orange Aquarious, neither of which you can buy in America.

Notice Brent's handy bread carrying pocket

forest lunch (not Forest Gump) stop

1:00-2:00 pm—arrive at destination for the day.  We usually walked somewhere between 22-38 km (14-22 miles) each day.  This took us between 5-9 hours daily with frequent stops for resting, refueling, or for Shay and Cole, playing on anything that looked remotely like a teeter-totter.  For the first several days, my feet ached and I felt each footfall. But, by day 6 or 7, I seem to have gotten over the hump and was neither achy nor in pain, (#winning), although I did spend a decent amount of time in the afternoons sitting against the wall with my legs at a 90 degree angle to drain the swelling which had accumulated there.

teeter

totter

3:00-5:00 pm—shower (I got a hot shower all but one time!), snack, NAP!

sisters sharing a pre-nap snack

5:00-7:00 pm—read, play cards, visit nearby bar and drink sidra or Estrella con Limon and plan the next day’s journey.

...or a little wine

Even Shay got into the action.  She's legal in Spain :)

7:00 pm—find local café serving the Menu Peregrino and eat, or cook supper of pasta, vegetables and cheese with doubtfully clean dishes found in the Albergue’s communal kitchen.

Our very first Pilgrim's Meal

Our first Albergue cooking experience

8:00 pm—play cards or read and try desperately to stay awake until at least 8:30.

...or lounge on your rubber sheets and play games on your phone

8:30 pm—lay on your assigned bunk and hope you don’t have three nearly-naked old French guys on the beds surrounding you.  Make sure to put your earplugs in to block out the massive amount of snoring that will occur—especially from that one pilgrim in your own group ( I won’t say whom, but he might look something like the character below).

Brent models Shay's Buff headband

Next Day: REPEAT

(Although we started at the beginning of the Camino and ended at the official stopping point, we didn’t have time to actually complete the entire pilgrimage, which is around 500 miles.  We did, however, complete approximately 260 miles of it.  Yea us!  We took a train for a portion of the middle section but hiked the last 62 miles so we could end up in Santiago, receive our compostela, and have our sins absolved.  And for all of you just getting in on the conversation, we are well aware that this absolution is not possible but have been long entertained by the absurdity of the idea.)

There you have it, a very long synopsis of our daily routine as we hiked the Camino.  We had exceptionally beautiful weather, gorgeous scenery, and perfect health.  And apparently Cole didn’t eat nearly enough to fuel his fiery furnace as he lost more than a dozen pounds on the journey and returned looking more emaciated than usual.  We also learned much about Spanish culture and each family member's personal idiosyncrasies in our extended time together.  But those posts are for another day after I recover from jet lag and actually do some real work. 

Bet you can’t wait! 

Buen Camino!

Pilgrims' Progress # 5: Europe Living and Camino Beginnings!

Wow!

That's the only word I can think of to describe our last week and a half in Europe! We arrived in Rome on Monday, June 2 and Brent and I celebrated our 25th anniversary there on the 3rd. We stayed in this ancient Italian city that is bustling with old ruins, amazing relics, and tiny little Smart cars on it's brick-lined  and crooked roadways. I fell in love with the slow-paced lifestyle and the fresh food we bought at the little markets and ate  each evening . And I learned to drink 'cappuccini' at the 'bar' (coffee shop) across the street from our rented apartment. 

On Friday of that same week, we left Rome early in the morning and flew to Madrid, Spain, where we stayed in a downtown hotel. From Madrid,  we rode two buses and then a taxi on very curvy mountain road to get to France. On our first night in France,  we stayed in a little hostel in an old house. The next morning we started our Camino adventure.The first day we walked from France into Spain, and in those previous 24 hours we had visited 3 different countries.  It was hard to remember what language we were supposed to be speaking!

Now, it is Tuesday, I think, and we have stayed in 4 hostels ('albergues'), eaten three pilgrim meals provided by cafes, gone to a Spanish Pilgrims' mass at a very old church, and walked through the famous town of Pamplona (no bulls were present). We have walked 84 kilometers (52 miles--nearly 20 of those today!) in 3 days.

I would love to tell you more but typing on my phone is hard so I will be brief. All in all, our adventure has been incredible and gorgeous! I will try to check in again when the internet is available. But now I need to sleep!