Keeping the Camino Spirit

Is really hard for me in day to day life. No matter how much I try it is so easy to get bogged down with stuff, and caught up in minutiae of life. I always feel better when I spend more time in nature and walking, and I have been doing neither of those things. I feel I have been focusing more on the negative than then positive of late and I need to change that. And of course, today I am faced with quite the rainstorm here in the southwest. So I don't walk. If I was actually on Camino I am sure I would have sucked it up and carried on and it would have been OK. I am not so I didn't. I regret that. Things always seem better when walking.

Bad days

I woke up yesterday on Sunday and my inner Gremlin had taken over. I was in a grumpy mood. I am not sure why. It was Sunday and literally the only thing on my to do list was my weekly long-ish walk.  Sometimes its easy to identify why a bad mood strikes,  and others like yesterday just happen. I had debated going on my door but in the end, thought I really wouldn't be in a better mood sitting on my couch so I my as well go out. It was surprisingly hot and sunny for 6 am, and nary a cloud in the sky.  I had been spoiled by all of the cloudy days this summer so this not great.  Not 1/2 mile from my door I was bit by a dog. It was one of those little ratty fast kind, that had got out of his yard. I had my trekking poles and tried to put it between me and the little evil thing next to my right leg on the side he was coming up to me on.  (This is what I have read what to do if you surprise a rattlesnake in the hopes it will strike your pole and not your shin) Well the little thing just did a football move, and bit me on me left leg right on the tendon. (which puts doubt into me regarding tricking a snake) I felt like a really hard pinch, and barely broke the skin.The thing bit me  and turned tail to run down the road so I couldn't retaliate even if I wanted to.   I almost turned back.  A couple of miles later  my generic camelbak, kept giving me fits. Somehow the hose kept getting semi detached not enough to leak but enough to stop water. I had to stop and fix it every so often. It has worked fine before this. I had plenty of time to think in the very hot and dusty and shadeless path I had erroneously picked for that day. Did I intuitively know what I was going to be in for on my walk so my mood adjusted accordingly,  or did my bad mood attract the somewhat unpleasant things? In the end I decided that it wasn't important. I just need to focus on continuing on to reach my goal. The walk didn't miraculously cure my ill spirit, but it did give me the sense of accomplishment.  And I woke up today in fine spirits, glad of having done my walk and also glad that the pet owner was responsible enough to have had the little beast get his shots.