Settled into solitude after some serious enquiry and energised to set off early for a longer walk ... over the hill to Secadero ... contemplating fears of cows, passing those grazing at the top ... and statistically it is wise to be aware, since in Britain it is not unknown for walkers to be attacked and even killed ... maybe by mothers concerned for calves, sometimes spooked by canine companions, less often by charging bulls perhaps ... and these Spanish ones have big horns ... and the difference between awareness and fear is the key maybe ... its frequency operating beyond species language barriers ...
... so, past the herd and relaxed into gentler thoughts, around the corner of the wooded track, face to face with two fine bovine creatures ambling up ... close ... we assess the situation ... my surprise settles to a cheery introduction in Spanish ... friendly confidence being the chosen strategy ... they don't stop to chat, turn round and stroll down the lane, find a passing place, park there and watch me pass ... I thank them and wish them adios and start musing whether the collective consciousness of cows includes the knowledge of what humans do to them ... in the abbatoir, the Bull Ring, the kitchen ... the factories where the flesh of mammalian relatives is separated from any ancient link with hunting and survival in inhospitable climates ... mixed with some chemical concoction to further conceal its cowness ... Big Mac anyone?
At Secadero in time for the 9 am bus to Guadiaro and a chat with Francisco at the stop ... freedom, doctors, football all covered in a few minutes' scrambled Spanglish ... a wander round to the Correos to collect the Post, then blogging and breakfast at the Lemon Bar ... an expanded early routine ... possibly inspired by Claire's consistent theme of expansion and contraction ...
A rather hot walk across the autovia bridge, musing on redesigning walking routes hereabouts. .. since public policy people perceive, albeit tardily, the trap of transport designed for cars ... the effect on mental and physical health and all that ... and observing my processing pattern of redesigning the world to be simpler, better for people in the whole and not just the atomized car borne units ...
At San Enrique a social call to Russ and from the bus come his old friend Mack, who needs a jack to change a wheel (really ... do let me know when the rhyming becomes tiresome) ... and Gato ... quite a party ... Mack and I head to the Casa in search of a jack from the Disco ... discussing a little on the topic of wishing life were sometimes different ... Eckhart Tolle expresses it well: change the situation, leave the situation, or accept the situation - all else is madness ...
No comments:
Post a Comment