Our day started drippy, and soon a full scale storm moved across the landscape. My wife and I walked thirteen miles through heavy gales and pelting rain. This leg of the Camino promised beautiful scenery, but I saw little of it with my head inside a poncho bent against the wind.

An unrelenting shower ran down my legs, filling my waterproof shoes. I squished through the afternoon and wrung enough water out of my socks at the end of the day to fill a small glass. Our blissful day of strolling turned into a slog.

Which (after drying out) makes for a good reflection on life. A day of pleasant hiking turned into a gut-it-out experience. However, as I walked past field after field of newly planted corn peeking from the ground, I realized that as I cursed under my breath, nearby farmers luxuriated in the glorious rain falling on their crops.

I’m reminded of this line from Jesus — God makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust (Matthew 5:45).

I’m not sure if I’m among the just or the unjust—I’ll find out when the time comes. But I can rest assured that just as a good harvest springs from showers dropping across Spain, good eventually emerges from the rains that fall in our lives.

Camino de Santiago 2024

Photo: Rows of new corn along the Camino route