It's not about getting an answer. It's about becoming the man that can make the decision!

I slept well in my 2 person bed in El Ganso. The only problem being that I still have to go pee at least twice during the night. I awoke there yesterday to find Marco still downstairs having breakfast. He had told me the night before that he was going to wake up at 4:00 in the morning and get up to the top of the mountains (Irajo) to see the sunrise. I had dreamt that he was still here when I woke up in the morning and sure enough, there he was. Breakfast was included so we sat down and I started eating. He told me of the dangers of places like this, wonderful Albergue's. Great, small Albergue's like this in nice small towns have a way of making you sleep longer and not want to leave. He was certain that if he would ever see a nice Albergue like this again he'd keep walking to find another. We both laughed at the idea but looking at the time we knew that he was right!

This was my 21st day of walking, three weeks on the road after this day with a bare minimum of 20 km's a day. I was getting into a rhythm for sure and I could even tighten my shoelaces a bit. I started at about 10:00, or a little after, and immediatly met a really interesting French man. He was here for the 4th year in a row. Every year he walks 15 days and he started 4 years ago in the middle of France, 1500 km's away from Santiago. This year is his final year, he'll finish the Camino. He's 74 years old but doesn't look a day older than 54. I think the people that do this walk have a spirit of eternal youth although he didn't seem to lack in wisdom. It was a good morning.

My morning was made even better a little later when Molly, to my surprise, caught up with me. She had already walked that morning all the way from Astorga and we reached Rabanal del Camino a short time later. We made our way further up the mountains and welcomed it with open arms. I've missed being in the mountains, big mountains like this that is. This range is called Irajo if I understood the hospitalero right. It was so good to be climbing up steep hills for a long time again, for more reasons than one. My left ankle had acted up again that morning and walking uphill seemed to be the only thing that didn't hurt. I had tied my shoelaces lower to try and decrease the pressure on that foot earlier that morning. That was a big mistake.

We had lunch at the summit. As we were having our meal Molly asked me if the Camino had given me any answer about what I should do when I come back home. All of the sudden it hit me and I said: "It's not about getting an answer. It's about becoming the man that can make the decision!" I had reached a turning point, again. The Camino has changed me in so many ways and I know now that it's truly not about getting the answers for the many many questions that I have regarding my life, but rather letting the Camino change me into the person that can make those decisions. I felt lighter somehow, as if a great weight had been lifted off me. I felt a little dissy, for a lack of a better description, and I knew I was right.

As we reached the top of the mountains the view was so fantastic that I know my vocabulary will not do it justice. Looking over the land that I had crossed on foot was a feeling surpassing all the feelings of conquest I had felt before I began this trip. Astorga was beautiful in the distance and we stared at it and all the other amazing sights that could be seen up there!

I don't know how we got to talking about that but I ended up mentioning the gift that I would most like to give to my unborn children. I would like to urge them to decide early who they want to be as a person and to constantly update that decision when new information reaches them. Now I remember, I was talking about the fact that I feel that with every year it becomes harder and harder to change who I am...that the older you are the more set you are in your ways. To decide who you want to be is so important. Not deciding who you want to be is like sailing the ocean without setting a course; you might not like where you end up. I don't like who a part of me is and I know that part is due to my indecision of who I should be. We are always changing, always. It's important to decide who we want to change into so that we don't become something that really is the opposite of what we want to stand for as human beings. I hope that my children will understand the importance and that they can learn from my mistakes.

As I said before it was a mistake to tie my left shoe lower to try and relieve pressure from my left ankle. I should have tied it to the top to get ankle support to the max. After starting our descent from the mountain the pain had become so great that I tried to tie it to the top again and realized that ankle support was just what I needed. Molly went ahead of me when we reached Riego de Ambros and I probably should have stopped there. My ankle wasn't the only problem. Last night when I took off my bandages on my right foot I realized that I had (I'm guessing here) taped my right toe so that it could not move properly. That meant that my big toe and the toe next to it where as if perpetually tense and I thought this day would cure that, now that the bandages were off. But that was not the case and instead my left ankle and my left foot echoed each other in cry's of pain all the way down the mountain. I made it to Molinaseca as my goal had been, a town too far to be sure, but an amazing experience.

When I was coming down the mountain, the last stretch, I listened to some more of the Lord of the Rings. As the book told of the many bugs that wouldn't leave them alone I started thinking if the bugs that were in my face were in fact the same bugs that had started to enjoy my face in El Ganso and if they had followed me the whole way to Molinaseca. There was at least always a score of flies in my face the whole way. Then the book mentioned their bags and I realized how heavy my bag is and how far I had taken it. At last it talked about the sun bearing down on them and I realized that I'm wearing all black in Spain and that the sun was frying me with it's last rays of the day...man the sun was hot, even then. I bought a big bottle of juice as I walked through the town and drank it all right there and then. I was parched and I had run out of water about an hour before I got there.

I arrived at the Albergue a little past 20:00 and I was tired, tired, tired!!! I had walked the 32 km's from El Ganso to Molinaseca. My feat were literally killing me but the conquest of yet another mountain range did a lot to cheer them up. I have plenty of energy after walking for the day recently, my feet too tired to carry me fast enough so that I can spend up all my energy. I could pretty much go party if my body would let me when I reach my destinations and so I guess my endurance is pretty good these days. The real hero of the day was of course Molly who walked a whopping 45 km's that day and on top of that crossed the mountains. She really is something!

I took a shower, washed my clothes, blogged a little and met some interesting new people. Then it was time for bed and there was a chorus of snoring that even my ear plugs couldn't completely fase out...