Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Not just another Bridge

Okay, I have no idea where I am going with that title but I did cross a river yesterday. With the wind pushing me almost all day and a hearty lunch to keep me going. When I began the day in Midway I had to stop at the most historic corner I had seen. This place had half a dozen historic markers which told of two men who signed our declaration of independence among other interesting facts that would be lost without these signs. Across the road from the church corner was the cemetery that I was told is haunted. I can believe it with all that history.
I finally worked my way out of town and started burning through the miles. Georgia is the first state in many that actually has mile markers. In the northern states I would walk all day and not know until the end of the day if I had walked fast or slow. I Massachusetts you better know what road you are on because the street signs only give the name of the intersecting road. As the wind picked up my pace grew faster and I didn't want to know how many miles I passed so I wouldn't look at the mile markers. PaSsing from one county to the next I was holding the world back, the wind was spinning out of control at times where the rope I have attached was jerking us from side to side. This must have worried folks driving by because I was visited by the local police. Who observed I was keeping off the driving lane. After all, everything to the right of the white line is ours, pedestrian friendly.
The miles blew by like the wind. I thought about stopping for the night but something spurred me to keep going even though I had only one possibility of a ride. The sun was sinking low and the world was in need of some air as we passed over the river into metro Savannah. I walked a couple more miles to the Wal-Mart and as it became dark I called the number of the woman who said she would be my "miracle" ride. She didn't answer. Over the next two hours I tried three more times, no answer. I posted myself at the Subway shop next to wally world and realized I had made it to "the big city" again and had become invisible to the busy city dwellers getting sandwiches for dinner, shopping for an hour at the video game shop and rushing home to be mesmerized in front of plasma. I thought of waiting until the police woulkd come late in the night to question me, but I called information for a cab and after choosing one of the seven choices I got my "miracle" ride from a man who was from Romania and had studied holistic medicine for years before coming to the states. He was a fountain of knowledge, philosophy and advice. He gave me his phone number and told me to call if I need to know something at any time. His is a number I will keep in my wallet for I learned much from our conversation. We both agree, there is no chance meeting. He called it, with his Romanian accent,"affinity." So, by surrendering to the notion that things happen for a reason and all things have a silver lining if I just get out of my own way I was honored to meet this gypsy soul and receive his gift of knowledge I can keep forever.
Not just another bridge, hmmm?

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