Late start after errands, and unfortunately had to spend more time on Band-aids. Had a great couple of weeks with only two, for prophylactic reasons, but this morning it has grown to nine. I’m not going to mention the b word, but me toes have several of them, and they are a B. It was bound to happen, and they will heal, but for now are a maintenance issue, and kinda hurt.
Nice stress free walk up 70… was a little different today, and a bit strange, in that I really had no set destination, no place I needed to be or distance I needed to cover. This thanks to my friend Rolando, who flew out here from Miami, picked me up on the highway, drove us back to Jackson. Had a great dinner and conversation. Rolando was one of my first friends after moving to San Antonio - we’ve both come a long way since! Tomorrow we’ll go back to my pickup/drop off point, I’ll head up the road, he’ll drive back to Memphis and fly back. He’ll be home before I get to my destination 17 miles away!
Another calm beautiful Tennessee day. Walked by several fields starting the Fall harvest, and realized I’ll probably get quite a lot of that as I walk forward. Love to watch it… think about all the effort from getting soil ready, then seeding, and fertilizing, water, heat, all the variables, but at some point, the crop is ready, hopefully, it’s reaped, and the cycle continues year after year. Let’s just put our trust in the farmers and corporations that they’re doing the right things to the soil and using chemicals that are relatively friendly to our world.
Had a nice moment resting along a fence, beautifully manicured farm, when I noticed a Hereford cow walking towards the shade of a tree. Jogging alongside was her little calf, very white face and markings, indicating it wasn’t but a couple of days old, still clean. It was just a really nice scene, and it made me happy to see, life going on. And then I got a little frustrated, for I know I could never describe it completely, for it would take pages and pages, to include the field, and the sky, and the breeze, the smells, the rest of the herd under a huge tree, the other cows standing chest deep in the muddy pond, the grass next to the fence, the fence… so you’ll never see it exactly the way I did, but you can use your imagination! And I’ll leave you with some pictures, as this kind of thing is happening hundreds of times a day!
And late this afternoon, one of the best moments of the trip… I was about to end the walking, Rolando was on his way, and I was walking on a wide bridge. I heard a car slowing down behind me and turned, figuring it was my ride. Instead, it was a guy in a truck asking if I needed anything, was I thirsty? hungry? I assured him I had everything I needed, he insisted in trying to help, but again, told him I was fine. We waved goodbye and he took off, only to turn around about an eighth of a mile away and return. He stopped and slowly got out of the car and walked towards me. He again asked if he could give me water, buy me something at the store, whatever. I declined again, for I had everything, and I started telling him where and why I was walking. He was surprised but I think he understood. We talked about trust and kindness, and all the kindness I’ve seen along the way, and how the world is really full of good people, who sadly hesitate to trust one another because of a tiny percentage of bad people among us. Then he held his hands out, and asked if he could pray for me. We held hands, right on the bridge, in front of his truck, and he asked for my safe arrival in NY, for me, my family. When he lifted his face, there was a tear in his eye which then ran down his cheek. He wanted to help me, he did help me, more than he’ll ever know. I gave him a hug goodbye, and we parted. I don’t know his name, have no idea what his truck looked like, didn’t mention walktothepark at all…
And being unable to fully describe what is happening around me these days, I leave you with some Tennessee pics…
