We have been in Spain for close to five weeks now and have a little under a month before heading back to the states. After spending three weeks volunteering at Albergue Verde, we walked five days on the Camino de Santiago to the small village of Herrerías. We are now helping out at Albergue Las Herrerías, an opportunity we found through workaway.info. Our days have been busier than I imagined they would be. The work of running a hostel for pilgrims begins early and ends late.
Sometimes I catch myself grumbling about the long days while cleaning up after the pilgrims have finished eating dinner and gone to bed, or while I am pulling hair balls out of the shower drains the following morning. During my life, I have honed my skill in finding discontentment. Put me in just about any situation, and I can probably find something to be unhappy about.
But then I remember that I am in Spain, with all my needs provided for, in exchange for a few hours of easy work each day. I am surrounded by beautiful mountains that have reinvigorated my love of running. I am interacting with interesting and inspiring people from all over the world. In short, I remember that life is good.
Many years ago I attended a