Madison proper proved to be a typically disheartening experience – at least as far as American cities were concerned, with local businesses being uniformly uninterested in even hearing about my Walk and the encountered leader of a local church (Pastor Dan of the Madison United Methodist congregation) refusing to offer even the most meager tithe of sustenance (not even water) before “wishing me well” along The Way. Things were looking pretty bleak indeed as I walked on, into and through and out of town – all the way to a shopping plaza on the far outskirts of town, where I am again rejected and dismissed quite callously. At least the owners of The Mandarin Express allowed me to rest for a bit at one of their tables, and it was here that one of their customers (Anne) asked me about my Walk. We chatted a bit about why I was engaging my pilgrimage and how I was doing its walking and the message of radical kindness I was sharing with folks along the way, and then she too wished me well and headed out the door. I received one more small cup of water and headed for the door as well, when Anne showed up again and told me “God told me to feed you.” I smiled and noted that this made sense; that any God of Love would be constantly telling us all to feed everybody nearby. She seemed to like this repartee, and we had a fun & silly time talking together and love & life in general as she bought me a Subway veggie sandwich, reluctantly allowed me to take a picture with her, wished me a continue peaceful journey, and then disappeared once more into the gathering dusk …

“Life is truly short and none of us have too much time for gladdening the hearts of those who are traveling the dark journey with us. So be ever swift to love, make ever haste to Be Kind … For if you choose being kind over being right and you’ll be Right every time.” ~ inspired by Henri Frederic Amiel & Richard Carlson

Filed under: Peace Pilgrimage #02: Walking HOME (2019) by Scaughdt