“Aftermath” — “definition: a second crop sown and reaped after the first mowing (math=mowing in Anglo-Saxon.) Following Hurricane Milton’s onslaught in Florida this week, the word has been used a lot, as in, “the aftermath of the hurricane…” I was surprised to learn from the dictionary that “aftermath” suggests a renewed and restorative second chapter and not simply a bleak devastation following a crisis.

This post will bring you up to date on the “aftermath” of our European sojourn for the last month, full of unplanned and unexpected experiences.

AFTERMATH: Irish Family Ties Strengthened. We spent a week in chilly and damp Ireland,  our second visit there after the death in 2022 of Ed’s dear brother, Dr. Bill Muldoon of St Paul and St John’s Abbey, Minnesota.

We feel closer than ever to these wonderful, hospitable and generous people and we are grateful to Bill for bringing them so fully into our lives.

AFTERMATH: Update on Anne’s Knee. Preliminary diagnosis is a wrench to tissues, no break or tear. Three weeks post event walking is already less painful. Physical therapy evaluation in one week with therapy to follow.

AFTERMATH: Hurricane Milton strikes Florida. While it appeared at some point that Milton might head for the southwest Gulf Coast near our Naples, FL condo — and 7 million Floridians were under evacuation orders on October 9-10 — the storm’s path was not as dire as it could have been. Flood waters came up,  but not as close as during Hurricane Ian last year. Our condo suffered neither wind nor flood surge damage although power was off for 12 hours or so. Our downstairs neighbor remained in residence and on guard while his wife and daughter sheltered in a nearby hotel. We think to relocate ourselves there for the winter toward the second half of November.

AFTERMATH: Ceiling collapse at Broadmoor Apartment. We are very grateful to our roommate and cousin, Dru, to Ed’s daughter, Lara, and to the Broadmoor crew, led by Alvaro, who responded to the messy and stinky collapse of our DC bedroom ceiling that occurred during our first week in Spain! We are grateful to be able to sleep in our own room since our return late on October 8, although wall repairs will be ongoing for a while.

AFTERMATH: How have we changed? With so many memories and experiences shared between us and with friends and families, there is much to absorb and ponder. Beauty, creativity, love. Impatience and patience. Pain, tolerance, care.

Sharing a few more memories,  below…

We have long wanted to visit Ravenna, capital of the western Roman Empire after it began to break up, in order to admire its wonderful mosaics. Ravenna is not an easy place to reach, whether for ancient tribal invaders,  or even today. We tried to figure a way to visit on Anne’s bad leg, but finally gave up the notion.

Difficult it has been to discern what to do once it became clear that Anne’s knee would not tolerate continued walking on the Camino.

At first we played it day by day. Putting weight on the left leg was painful: would this improve?

We took buses forward along the Camino route,  from Estella to Los Arcos and then to Logroño, capital of Spain’s wine growing district,  La Rioja. When we reached Logroño it happened to be September 24, Feast of St Matthew, celebrated with great enthusiasm with meat cooked over open fires, wine and drink,  music and bull fighting.

Another bus ride brought us to Burgos, a place that we long hoped to revisit. Burgos Catedral is the only Spanish cathedral which is,  on its own (not part of an historical district) a World Heritage Site. Scores of inspired artists and craftsmen from across Europe created a marvel of the “new” style — Gothic — in north central Spain, the kingdom of Aragon and Leon.

By this time we determined that we would spend another couple of weeks in Europe and then seek medical attention for the knee back in the States. We decided to visit two places that we wanted to see for the first time — Zaragoza, Spain and Naples, Italy — and then visit our dear family in Ireland.

Zaragoza is a dynamic city with the Goya Museum and much to see. Also, it was blessedly warm and sunny,  compared to the chilly dampness we left behind on the Camino route.

From Naples we fly to Ireland with hope to return to Washington DC by October 9.