{"id":272,"date":"2025-05-09T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/?p=272"},"modified":"2025-06-11T22:20:13","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T20:20:13","slug":"tears-in-the-church","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/tears-in-the-church\/","title":{"rendered":"Tears in the church"},"content":{"rendered":"

May 9,\u00a0 2024<\/p>\n

After a lot of dawdling, I finally get going. Honestly, I\u2019m snoozing with a capital S these days. Still, I end up walking 32 km. I find a lovely rhythm and enjoy every step.<\/p>\n

Public toilets are really common here, and they\u2019re beautiful and spotless. I think there\u2019s a law that says there always has to be an accessible toilet too\u2014super convenient. They\u2019re spacious enough for me to roll my cart right in. Sometimes they\u2019re compost toilets, but more often they have sinks and even hot running water. When they do, I take the opportunity to freshen up properly. Swimming still feels like a step too far\u2014I\u2019m not that brave yet when it comes to cold water. So I\u2019m thrilled when I come across a little hut next to a farm that anyone can use. Of course I take full advantage. I leave there feeling fresh and clean, and not long after I stumble upon a little open-air museum. It\u2019s lovely to see how Swedish people used to live and work.<\/p>\n

Today I try something different: I cook and eat a hot meal around two in the afternoon. It works out well. After a long break I continue with new energy, and in the evening I don\u2019t need to rush to cook or find a campsite.<\/p>\n

In \u00d6rkelljunga I hear organ music coming from the church. It\u2019s a beautiful building, with a wooden shingled roof\u2014something I haven\u2019t seen before. I walk inside. The organist is practicing. He comes down to see who entered after hearing the door shut. He lets me stay.
\nHe gives me a private concert. It\u2019s powerful\u2014and it moves me deeply. I don\u2019t know why, but emotions start bubbling up, and suddenly I\u2019m crying. I\u2019m not thinking about anything in particular. I just feel. I\u2019m alive!<\/p>\n

After this intense experience, I continue looking for a place to camp. This time it\u2019s tough\u2014there are several areas here where camping isn\u2019t allowed, only for fishermen. But after a few more kilometers, I find a spot. By then it\u2019s started raining, and I pitch my tent in a hurry. Not ideal, but it is what it is.<\/p>\n

That night I sleep poorly. Earlier, during a steep climb, I pushed hard on my knee, twisted, and heard something snap. The pain went away quickly, and I thought it was nothing. I even walked another 10 km afterward without issue\u2026 But unfortunately, it\u2019s not that simple.<\/p>\n