hitchhiking into the refrigerator

Well, once again I had an adventure, as I unexpectedly ran into a holiday.

Here I had it all planned out to take city and county buses to get from the airport to my home town, but got stranded out in the middle of nowhere, at a Transfer point, only to find that the next county's buses did not run yesterday, in observance of Veteran's Day, Nov 11th.


Well, there I was, with little food or money, or willingness to pay $99 for a room at the nearby Holiday Inn. It was getting dark. It was getting cold. I was getting down to my long tube ankle warmers and wool hat and gloves that I always carry in my little backpack, in case I get stranded somewhere on a day expedition, hiking, photographing nature out in the middle of nowhere. I already had thrown my 10 foot long by 6 foot wide cloth that I bought long ago at a women's fabric store, cut a shoulder slit and a neck slit in the mid-point along the fold lines, to make a kind of serape and meditating robe, and emergency huddle-up wrap. Also works well as a bird-blind for videographing.

Anyway, I finally got home after 5 hours of hitchhiking and waling along the dark roadway. The stars were bright in the darkness withoout any houses or towns around.

Came upon a house in the woods, which had a big fires up in the tree-level. I wondered why they were burning a big campfire up so high, couldn't figure it out. Maybe a large cone incinerator, like the old days of shake mills burning off the waste wood. But it turned out to be a chimney fire. Maybe helped them to keep from burning down their wood house in the woods, having walked a ffew miles at a vigorous pace to keep warm, and get there just in time.

Also met a few of my 1 in a 1,000 brothers, to talk of many things during the voyage. Some are in rough shape.

More later.

--outrider

Addendum, November 15, 2004

[quote="Juliania"]Thanks, outrider, I very much appreciate your input. I hope all is well with you there. You make my point that what cannot be proven will remain forever in doubt. I prefer certainty, and one must choose - life requires it. I am happy with my choice. Be well![/quote]

--Well, I popped back in for a moment. I'm moving more into the "real" physical world, so less time on the Internet and this discussion board. If I'm going to do more travelling (and meeting souls and ministering to them, often in the mode of St Jude), I need to get back into top shape. That's why I went everywhere for two years by either walking or bicycling, and bought no gasoline during those two years. Last summer, though, I wanted to go canoeing, to get out into the wilderness and meet the wild animals in certain areas, so I fixed up my vehicle again, to carry and transport the canoe. Besides which, someone stole my bike off my back porch in September, a couple of days after two drunken rednecks in a pickup had tried to do much evil to me as I rode my bike on a back street.

Last Thursday, as I was coming back from Florida, I was going to take the county buses back home from where the plane landed. But I got out to a transfer station, only to find that one county was not running their buses, in honor of Veterans Day. It was getting dark. It was getting cold. I could not afford the $99 room at the Holiday Inn down the road.

So I had to start hitchhiking. I put on all my tropical clothing, then wrapped my large cloth (that I use for an emergency wrap, a prayer robe, and a bird blind when photographing) around my shoulders, like a winter wrap, then my wool cap and gloves which I always carry in my day backpack. My last thing out of my small rolling suitcase was a pair of long tubular ankle warmers, that I had also put in when going down to FL, for the cold trip back. But it was colder than I had figured on.

After a couple of rides, and not much traffic (at least not the 1 in a 1,000 that might pick me up), I started to get cold, so had to start walking down the long dark country road. Away from all electric lights, the stars in the deep black sky were brilliant, and I could see millions of stars in the abundant Milky Way, as welll as everywhere else in the night sky...that we normally can't see when electric lights are around.

After walking a couple of miles, I saw a big fire up in the air in the woods, ahead on the left. The fire was bright orange, about three feet across, and 6 feet high, like an old flare-up from a waste-burning cone outside the old-time shake and shingle mills. But as I walked nearer along the road, I saw that it was a house beneath. I wondered why they had built such a big fire up high off the ground, what kind of nighttime revel might be taking place, as could have happened in the illogical 70's. But as I came close to the dirt driveway, I saw that this house in the woods, with its gathered around old wrecker cars and trucks, had a chimney fire. After waiting a bit for any mad watchdog to come toward me barking insanely (there was none), and I was reluctant to walk up and knock on the door, a woman eventually came out onto the small front porch. By then, the fire had died down to a small one with side tints of green and blue. I told her they had a chimney fire. A car passing stopped, to see what was going on. After explaining, I asked him where he was going. He named the town that is near my destination, then quickly stepped on the gas to speed away with a smirk. I continued down the empty dark cold road, running into, then breaking through the barriers I had been facing: worries about getting cold, or getting hungry, or dangerous murderous rednecks cruising for someone to kill, or not being able to tolerate the rising bodily pains. I also had a bad head cold that had persisted in Florida for a couple of weeks, as I helped senior citizens.

But my trek only made me stronger.

And I sensed no bad vibes, no impending dangers from the occasionally passing rightwingers in their fancy cars.

I eventually arrived, late that night, at my house. Tired but energized, stronger, healthier, and more confident that there is still much good in this universe. And that I still had a place and a purpose in it.

And they continued, walking through the earth, led unwittingly by the Holy Spirit, ministering to lost or bruised souls, with signs following.

As for me, I now know that I want to choose to do only good, and to do as much good I can, wherever I can. I also know that whatever good we put out into this universe which may currently be filled with much darkness and evil, is not lost. There is still much good to be found, to be planted, to be nurtured.

--outrider