Sloppy Giant
Cinch, loosen, rearrange, shift. Somedays no matter how many adjustments are made, the backpack just doesn’t quite fit right. Today was one of those days. We accelerated some kilometers by taking a bus to Asebi Stop. After the short ride, the remainder of the walk to Temple 22 felt familiar, with one exception, the ladies who provided breakfast o-settai in their driveway in 2009 were not there. Maybe we were to late in the day to enjoy their juices, tea, rice cakes and moichi, or maybe after seven years they were no longer providing passing pilgrims their good food and company.
At Temple 22, Byōdōji, we ran into the older pilgrim we had been keeping pace with over the last few days. He finally talked to us. Since learning we are from the United States he now greets us with “ah California”.
Shikoku literally means "four provinces” and for the last nine days we have been hiking through the mountainous Tokushima prefecture. This afternoon we will reach the seaside. The next few weeks will be flatter terrain. After a rest at a henro hut there would be only 5km left until we reached the blue waters of the Pacific and would feel regular sunshine on our shoulders. Weather permitting.
The first glimpse of the ocean was exciting. We headed straight to Tainohama Beach to set up camp. We pitched our tent on a grassy area near the water. Our fellow pilgrim Mika arrived shortly thereafter with another Frenchman, Pierre. They would also camp here tonight. We all hung out, sharing stories and drinking Asahi Beer. Slowly clouds began to take over our blue sky and the gentle wind picked up speed. Although none of us wanted to mention it, rain was on everyones minds. Mika started looking for more cover as his tent was not waterproof. We said our good nights and retreated to our shelters. Soon after dark the wind really took off. It was hard to tell which was stronger, the sound of the crashing waves or the trees that were certainly being uprooted. At least there was no rain, that is until 11 pm. Hour by hour the rain got stronger and the winds wilder. Inside the tent was oddly comfortable. Loud, but dry and warm. We laid fully awake throughout the night watching the tent implode then explode, like a sloppy giant breathing heavily through its nose. By morning the rain and wind were still pounding us. There would be no blue skies today. To be continued….
April 16, 2016 - Temple 22
