So we were off on a wet day and the forecast was for a week of rain but no concern, we were on our way.The forest birds were there because no trees were getting chopped so they were our friends. It was a busy route because it is a challenge and this was obvious on the numbers. We soon left the bitumen, but the track was one where we needed to focus our attention: slippery rocks; narrow in places; walkers crowding, so danger time for me where I took all precautions. Because of my a/f I had to, but soon started to sway and legs became weaker and I wonder if my usual positive placebo approach was getting wise to me.

I gave Corrie my poles and with both hands leant on one thigh at a time and then walking backwards, giving my glutes a rest. This however was temporary.

I reflected on how these changes were more dramatic than before so now I had a fear factor to contend with, so I leant against a tree and took a breather for 20 minutes. Fortunately I soon reached the final plateau and with some help from Corrie made it to our six Euro home in one of the 4 bunk Alburgue dormitories. Jacko from Prague was the only other resident.

It was time for a meeting which concluded with a ‘no’ vote. Both voters agreeing that I could cause harm, and that was unnecessary. After all, it was April, Parkinson’s awareness month, where I read a poem about awareness with our Blue Mountains support group. It would be silly to not listen to the message. Below is the poem:

Silent Shade (Author unknown)
A shadow falls, unseen, unheard
A whisper soft, a silent word.
A disease takes hold, a subtle thing.
Awareness blooms, and hope can sing.

The body weeps, a silent plea
As darkness creeps, relentlessly.
And in the light, we start to see.
The struggle deep for you and me.

The silent shade, a hidden pain,
A battle fought again, again
But knowledge shines, a guiding star,
To reach right out, and heal afar.

Let empathy be our guiding light.
To bridge the gap, and making it right.
For in awareness, strength we find,
To heal the body, and the mind.

We slowly explored Grado for the next couple of days, keeping to the flat. Grado was the first time we saw snow, and it also snowed while we received a sudden dumping of hailstones, where I lost my i phone, victim of an open zipper pocket, Thus a bit of a pause in an already chequered posting attempt where our iPad has now given up the ghost. After the memorial, we sang a few healing chants for Corrie’s phone on hope that it will recover from its poor memory.