When Angels look like Spanish Men

I have seen many acts of kindness in my life.  I have been the recipient of many acts of kindness in my life.  Never have I been more humbled by, and appreciative of an act of kindness than I was by the one we received today.  A man, or an angel - I cannot be sure - washed Lorraine's feet.  Not because he was fulfilling a ritual religious ceremony.  He washed them only because she was tired and her feet were dirty.

There he was ... In the most unexpected place - literally halfway between two Spanish towns, sitting in a beaten-up van, a few chairs and blankets scattered helter-skelter over the dusty ground and a dozen handwritten signs - all pointing to different objects saying, "Donations only".  

He bubbled over when we stopped and began to take our packs off, and through the happy Spanish words we deciphered that for us, the pilgrims, it was free.  If we were tourists, we would pay but everything was free for the pilgrim!  

I asked for a coke and he jumped through the back door, dug around and came up with a cold Coke.  Lorraine had been struggling (see last nights prayer request) with a painful leg, I had been carrying both packs for a couple of hours, and I explained all that to the man.  He quickly grabbed a chair, rushed to her side, insisted that she sit, and began untying her boots and removing her socks.  Jumping back up and diving into the van again he emerged with a spray bottle, knelt on the ground in front of her and tenderly washed her feet.  Finished with that, he turned his attention to the painful leg, checking often to ensure that she was comfortable with his ministrations. All the while he massaged, be rambled on about how his role in life is to assist the pilgrims on their walk. 

I think Lorraine's Facebook post said, "I wonder if angels can look like middle aged Spanish men with prickly beards". I know this one did.