Changing time zones, staying up too late, and being out in the fresh air
caught up with me last night. Sitting at
the table I struggled to stay awake to finish my journal entry. I managed to get all my thoughts down and
then was in bed by 10:30...slept hard all night as far as I could tell.
As a result of a good night’s sleep I was ready to get up when the sky started to lighten. I quietly got dressed, grabbed my walking stick and camera, and headed out to watch the sun rise over the mountains. Figured a high spot would be the best vantage point so I headed up to the petroglyph ridge. The ridge is to the west of our campsite and as I walked I could see the western mountains (San Andres Mountains) taking on a reddish glow....kept looking behind me to make sure I didn’t miss the sunrise. I stepped up my pace.
Back
at camp Kim was still sleeping so I pulled my rocking camp chair over to the
picnic table, put my feet up on the bench and watched the sun climb in the sky.
Overall, it was a most excellent start
to the day!
**Side note: Ravens make more of a grunting
sound, crows make the ‘caw’ sound.**
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Kim twisted his ankle on our walk coming down
the petroglyph ridge the other day. Not
the easiest terrain to navigate while going downhill; even paying attention it’s
easy to catch your toe on a rock. I was in front...heard a noise, turned around
to see him stumbling toward me and I put my hands out to stop him. His ankle was slightly tender on the way back
to camp; he took some ibuprofen and it didn’t seem to bother him at all
yesterday. However, this morning the
ball of his foot was very tender and it impacted his mobility. Not that he wasn’t willing to walk...he just
had to compensate for the sore spot. And
sitting here at night it feels pretty good but it’ll be interesting to see how
it feels when the shoe comes off.
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I
fired up the geocaching app and found one right here at Three Rivers Petroglyph
Site. Yeehaw! This should be a freebie
since we’re here. Let me see where it
is...hey, wait a minute...it’s an Earth cache...what’s that? Oh, it says I have
to answer five questions and send them to this guy before I can claim the cache.
That should be easy peasy...I’ve been up there 4 or 5 times. Uh-oh, these questions are tough. Guess I’ll have to do some reading. Geez
Louise, this is like being in school.
One
of the requirements was following the coordinates to find some petroglyphs,
pick out a favorite and describe it in detail.
So back up the ridge I go, only to discover that the coordinates put me
in the scrub brush at the bottom of the ridge where there are no petroglyphs. I continued on my way to the covered vantage
point where I sat and formulated my responses to the ‘test’. Still have to send the email with my answers and
if he denies my claim so be it; but in my head and heart I know I earned it...I’ve
been up there so many times I could give tours.
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Kim talked to the camp hosts this morning and
got the scoop on a chapel just down the road. We were both intrigued by the lady hosts
description: there are two services a year...the caretaker is third
generation...and it’s filled with religious artifacts. I had noticed a geocache in the same
direction so we took a drive this afternoon to find both the chapel and the
cache. As it turned out the geocache was
at a cemetery right next to the chapel.
Upon entering the chapel we saw the significance of the woman in the chair...the chapel had been named for her and she was everywhere inside in the form of statues, paintings, drawings and more. Santo Nino de Atocha was her name and while there was nothing indicating her significance I now had a name; my Google search just got easier.
drawings, and more.
I gleaned this information from Wikipedia and the website Banderas New.com:
El Santo Nino de Atocha is the patron saint of those unjustly imprisoned. He also protects travelers and rescues people in danger.
The
devotion to El Santo Nino de Atocha originated in Spain. Its origin may be
related to Our Lady of Atocha, in Madrid, Spain, who is mentioned in the
"Cantigas" of King Alphonse the Wise in the 13th century.
In the 13th century,
Spain was under Muslim rule. The town of Atocha,
now part of Madrid's Arganzuela district, was lost to the Muslims,
and many Christians there were taken prisoners as spoils of war. The Christian
prisoners were not fed by the jailers, but by family members who brought them
food. According to pious legend, the caliph ordered that only children under
the age of 12 were permitted to bring food. Conditions became increasingly
difficult for those men without small children. The women of Atocha prayed
before the statue of Our Lady of Atocha at a nearby parish, a title of
the Blessed Virgin Mary, to ask her son Jesus for help.
Reports
soon began among the people of Atocha that an unknown child under the age of
twelve and dressed in pilgrim's clothing had begun to bring food to childless
prisoners at night. The women of the town returned to Our Lady of Atocha to
thank the Virgin for her intercession and noticed that the shoes worn by the
Infant Jesus were tattered and dusty. They replaced the shoes of the Infant
Jesus, but these became worn again. The people of Atocha took this as a sign
that it was the Infant Jesus who went out every night to help those in need.
In artwork,
the Holy Child often wears a brimmed hat with a plume and a cloak or cape
ornate with the St. James shell. (During the Crusades, scallop shells were the
symbol of holy pilgrimages and one European variety is still referred to as
"the pilgrim" or "St. James' shell." Poets have written
about their beauty and artists have admired their symmetry and grace.) In his
left hand, He carries a pilgrim's staff to the gourd of water is fastened, a
pair of shackles, and a few spears of wheat. In his right hand, He holds a
basket which generally contains bread or flowers. He either wears sandals or is
barefoot. The Child is said to roam the hills and valleys, particularly at night,
bringing aid and comfort to the needy, and thereby wearing out his shoes. He is
usually shown seated.
So what I thought was a young woman was
actually a 12 year old Jesus. And
everything I’ve read says that Santo Nino is the patron saint of the wrongly
accused; I haven’t found anything relevant to honoring the deceased. A visit with the caretaker
would be helpful.
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We washed the bikes
today...time to get last year’s bug grime off.
Kim has higher standards than I do so I was done slightly sooner than he
was. Both bikes are now sparkling in the sunlight, ready to rock n roll.
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Later in the afternoon we drove down US 54 to do some more geocaching. Found 3 more easy caches bringing our total to 4 today...5 if we include the petroglyphs.
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Got a shower this
evening. It was awkward, it was short but
it was hot and that’s what matters. 😊
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