#throwback – June 3, 2024

I sleep wonderfully in the roadside grass again. In fact, I’ve been struck by how well I sleep on this entire journey. Not that I never wake up during the night, but everything feels so peaceful and natural. Even waking up in the middle of the night feels that way. Every morning, I wake up completely rested, even though I usually rise very early and don’t sleep that many hours. Around eleven I set off, and not even two kilometers later, I feel hungry and eager to sit down again. And I can give in to that! I never could have done that “before.” I’d have thought it was ridiculous—who takes a break so soon again? But now it makes me feel proud. I even take the time to unfold my little chair and properly enjoy the moment. It feels so good to listen to your feelings and your true needs, no matter how odd they might seem. I feast on some bread rolls, my apple, the sunshine and the view. This was the only right decision. Period.

Water management fails me today. I used up the last of it with my morning coffee, and I don’t come across a single water source on the way. I pass a few farms, but there’s no one around to ask, and no outdoor taps in sight. A box of cherry tomatoes saves me—still 95% water, after all. I always thought “cherry tomato” was a silly word, but now it makes perfect sense. They taste like the sweetest candy and quench my thirst. Not having died of dehydration, I’m lucky enough to pass a church with a graveyard, where I can refill my water and cook my hot meal among the violets.

At my camping spot, I can indulge in sniffing to my heart’s content. Some people sniff glue, others cocaine—I sniff wood. My God, it smells amazing. I’ve pitched my tent in a half-cleared forest and I’m fully immersed in the pleasure of fragrant, fallen nature.