Tuesday 14th October 2014….a really busy day!!!!

Starting with tennis again at 9am and as always it was wonderful to be on the courts…..I went straight from there to my second and last coaching session for the story telling event and Stephanie did offer some great alterations……..I feel comfortable now with the story and look forward to tonight.

Back home just in time to get cleaned up and go to Rita’s for our usual Tuesday afternoon chat and when Roger came over the card game…this time Roger was the winner.

Home again and into the shower and down to the theatre for the competition…….it was full and 18 of us told out stories…the guidelines were that the story could not be read…had to be around 7 minutes…must be true and about yourself……

I was scheduled to tell my story three from the end so I just sat in the audience and enjoyed the great stories…..there was a scare in the middle of one story when a gentleman in the audience appeared to have a seizure……the show was stopped for 30 minutes and I think he was Ok there was a Doctor in the audience.

I was not nervous and I think I did a god job I know I sure enjoyed it all….

This is my story!!

 

AS I STOOD AT THE TRAILHEAD OF THE pilgrimage KNOWN AS THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO IN Spain I KNEW I HAD.

35 DAYS AND 535 MILES OF HIKING AND ALL WITH JUST A BACK pack AND A pair OF STURDY BOOTS AND THE KNOWLEDGE THAT I NEEDED TO LET GO OF A CERTAIN LADY IN MY LIFE.

WHAT QUICKLY BECAME Apparent WAS THAT THE CAMINO WAS INUNDATED WITH YELLOW ARROWS DIRECTING THE TURNS I WAS TO TAKE… WHEN EVER I CAME TO A FORK IN THE path OR TRACK ALL I HAD TO DO WAS LOOK IN A NEARBY TREE, OR THE SIDE OF A WALL AND THERE WOULD BE THE YELLOW ARROW.

I WAS WALKING ABOUT 20 MILES A DAY AND FEELING STRONG, CALM AND AT peace KNOWING THE ARROWS WERE DIRECTING ME ON MY JOURNEY….THAT IS UNTIL DAY 18!!!!!!

THAT MORNING I WAS WALKING MERRILY ALONG WHEN I CAME TO A T JUNCTION AND HORROR OF HORROR NO MATTER WHERE I SEARCHED NO YELLOW ARROW..I HAD A CHOICE AND I TURNED LEFT AND AFTER A Couple OF MILES I KNEW I HAD MADE THE WRONG DECISION AS I COULD SEE THE VILLAGE I NEEDED TO BE IN WAY DOWN IN THE VALLEY….NO WORRIES I THOUGHT I WOULD JUST CUT OFF THE path THROUGH SOME FARMERS properties AND CONNECT WITH THE VILLAGE. I COULD HEAR DOGS BARKING IN THE DISTANCE SO I WENT INTO THE BUSH AND FOUND AN OLD BRANCH TO USE AS A DOG DETERRANT AND AWAY I WENT .

I WAS ALMOST AT THE VILLAGE WHEN I CAME Upon AND OLD LADY AND HER SON LEADING A LARGE plough HORSE..AS I passed BY I SMILED AND SAID BUENAS DIAS AND Kept WALKING. I SUDDENLY HEARD THE OLD LADY SHOUTING AND GESTURING TO ME… MY FIRST INSTINCT WAS TO TURN AND RUN BUT THEN I realized  SHE WAS CALLING ME TO HER AND RELUCTANTLY I WENT…..SHE TOOK THE BRANCH OUT OF MY HAND SMILED AT ME WITH THAT WITHERED FACE AND CROOKED TEETH AND HANDED ME HER BEAUTIFUL CARVED AND Tapered BROWN WALKING STICK…SHE KISSED ME ON THE CHEEK AND SAID SOMETHING WHICH I THINK MIGHT HAVE BEEN “TAKE MY GOOD STICK”.

I THANKED HER AND TURNED AND WENT INTO THE VILLAGE WITH MY NEW FRIEND MY STICK…IT WAS A perfect FIT AND I FELT AN INSTANT ATTACHMENT AND I Aptly NAMED MY NEW STICK…….STICK!!!!

AS THE DAYS AND WEEKS passed I WAS WALKING MAYBE 20 MILES A DAY FOLLOWING THE YELLOW ARROWS SEEING NO ONE AND BECOMING VERY BEST FRIENDS WITH STICK…I WOULD TALK TO HIM …TELL HIM MY INNER SECRETS…MY DESIRES…BY NEED TO LET GO OF that lady.

I WOULD WALK DOWN COUNTRY LANES IMAGINING I WAS THE DRUM SEARGEANT MAJOR OF THE ROYAL MARINE BRASS BAND THROWING STICK HIGH IN THE AIR AND USUALLY CATCHING HIM BEFORE HE FELL TO THE GROUND…LIFE WAS GREAT AND STICK AND I WERE ENJOYING THIS Amazing JOURNEY.

ON DAY 29 SOMETHING STRANGE Happened I CAME Upon TWO OTHER pilgrims ON THE TRAIL….LIBBY AND KATIE YOUTHFUL AND LOVELY AMERICANS BUT LIBBY WAS SUFFERING WITH HUGE BLISTERS ON ONE OF HER TOES AND SHE WAS SAT ON THE TRACK WITH HER SHOES OFF SOFTLY SOBBING……I AM NO MEDIC BUT I KNEW SOME FIRST AID AND HAD SOME GREAT Supplies AND I OFFERED TO TEND TO HER FOOT AND SHE AGREED AND AFTERWARDS SHE WAS ABLE TO GET HER BOOT BACK ON AND WALK BUT WITH A Limp ..SHE THANKED ME SO MUCH AND WE ALL HUGGED AND I CONTINUED MY JOURNEY ALONE…..

I WENT MAYBE 50 YARDS WHEN I Stopped…TURNED AROUND AND WENT BACK TO LIBBY WHO I COULD TELL WAS STILL SUFFERING…I LOOKED AT HER SMILED AND HANDED HER STICK……I TOLD HER THE STORY OF STICK AND HOW MUCH WE HAD BONDED AND SHE promised TO TAKE CARE OF HIM AND I TURNED AND WENT AWAY.

LIFE WAS NOT THE SAME FOR ME WITHOUT STICK…IT SEEMED A HUGE part OF ME WAS MISSING..I YEARNED FOR OUR CONVERSATIONS FOR OUR THROWING AND CATCHING ROUTINES….I JUST Simply MISSED STICK!!!

A FEW DAYS LATER AFTER A GRUELLING 25 MILE HIKE I WAS ON THE patio OF A BAR HAVING A COOL BEVERAGE WHEN WHO CAME AROUND THE CORNER BUT LIBBY AND KATIE…I SAW THAT LIBBY WAS NOT Limping BUT WHAT WAS SHE HOLDING IN HER HAND….IT SURE LOOKED LIKE LIKE STICK BUT NOW HE WAS ADORNED WITH FRESH FLOWERS AND ON THE HANDLE BRAIDS OF LEAVES…..HE LOOKED NOW LIKE A GIRLIE STICK!!!!

WE TRADED STORIES AND THEN I LEFT SAYING FOND FAREWELLS TO THE GIRLS AND OF COURSE TO THE GIRLIE STICK.

I WAS ON MY LAST DAY BEFORE I ENTERED THE CITY OF SANTIAGO I HAD WALKED OVER 500 MILES THOUSANDS OF THOSE YELLOW ARROWS AND DAYS WITH MY BUDDY STICK…I HAD JUST GONE THROUGH A SMALL VILLAGE WHEN Up  AHEAD I SAW LIBBY AND KATIE…I LENGTHENED MY STRIDE AND WAS ABOUT TEN FEET BEHIND THEM THEY HAD NO IDEA I WAS THERE AND I LOOKED CLOSER AND LIBBY WAS NOT CARRYING STICK….WHERE WAS HE OR SHE WHAT HAD SHE DONE WITH MY STICK..AT THAT INSTANCE LIBBY TURNED AROUND SHRIEKED LIKE A BANSHEE AND RAN RIGHT past ME LIKE AN OLYMIC Sprinter INTO THE VILLAGE..I STOOD THERE perplexed NOT KNOWING WHAT HAD JUST GONE DOWN WHEN I LOOKED AGAIN LIBBY WAS RUNNING BACK TOWARDS ME CLUTCHING STICK CLOSE TO HER BOSOM AND A HUGE SMILE ON HER FACE….SHE TOLD ME THEY HAD JUST HAD COFFEE AND WHEN THEY WERE WALKING SHE REALIED SHE HAD LEFT STICK IN THE COFFEE Shop  SO TURNED TO GO BACK AND THEN SAW ME AND FREAKED IT WAS LIKE I WAS A DEAMON COMING TO punish HER FOR LEAVING STICK BEHIND….WE ALL LAUGHED AND THEN EVENTUALLY SAID OUR FINAL GOODBYES I KNEW I WOULD NOT SEE THE GIRLS AGAIN AND NOR WOULD I HOLD MY STICK..TALK TO MY STICK..THROW MY STICK HIGH IN THE AIR….I TOLD STICK I REALLY CARED FOR HIM AND TURNED AND LEFT.

I COMLETED THE CAMINO THE NEXT DAY AND MY LIFE IS STILL EVOLVING..STICK WILL ALWAYS BE A HUGE part OF MY LIFE AND THE YELLOW ARROWS REASONATED SO MUCH WITH ME THAT WHEN I RETURNED TO ENGLAND I HAD A YELLOW ARROW TATTOED ON MY BODY…..FOR THOSE OF YOU INTERESTED AFTER THE SHOW FOR 200 pesos I WILL GIVE A private VIEWING……THANK YOU!!!

I got a resounding applause and it was just a great night……the judges will choose two storytellers who will go to the big event this weekend……I do not expect to be one of the two but I also know it was a wonderful experience.

I want to thank my friends Karen and Phyllis for coming tonight and supporting me and afterwards we went out for a lovely dinner.

So it certainly was a day!!!

Yashi Kochi!!!