Sam's Unity Blog

Epilogue

2008-07-28T02:00:00.000-07:00

In the early hours of Sunday morning with my forehead pressed against the window of the Vietnam Airlines flight, the southern hemisphere stars faded from view as a rainbow of colours beckoned in the first sunrise over Australian soil I'd seen since December of2006. It was a beautiful sight from 20,000ft above the red centre of Australia & the only thing I could think of was how far away Brazil now was... and how close my friends & family were. The flight touched down at Sydney airport an hour behind schedule but thankfully the 50-odd friends who were waiting to welcome me home had stuck around. It was a tad embarrassing when a couple of the guys pulled out guitars & began singing U2's "With or Without You" in full-voice, but I was so happy to see everyone after all this time & to simply be with them again that there singing simply provided atmosphere. It took nearly an hour to say hello to everyone & remove ourselves from the building. As I stepped out of the airport terminal the first car to drive past me startled me as it headed past on the 'wrong side of the road' with the driver on the 'wrong side of the car'. I was home, but it was feeling a little odd & dare I say 'foreign'. I climbed into the Pannell family van & we drove off to our first port-of-call, Sunday mass. Martin (the dad) has an ability to ask 100 questions a minute & he was on fire. For the first time in my life though I was able to keep up with him. He had so many questions & I had so many stories to tell! We soon found a midday mass at a small church in the centre of Sydney & found the last two remaining seats, right up the front. Steve Toohey, The national director of Youth Mission Team Australia (my old stomping ground) also arrived with his family & so we all took our place in readiness for the service. Now, to set the scence, throughout almost the entirity of the walk from Brazil to Spain, two retired couples, John & Margaret Pollard and Charles & Beth Fivaz, had emailed me weekly with words of inspiration & encouragement. I'd never met them, they'd simply heard of the walk & decided to become active participants. Charles & Beth lived in Melbourne and John & Margaret lived south of Sydney where, as far as I understood, they attended the local Anglican Church. Along the seat I'd sat down in were a heap of kids, then myself, Steve Toohey & an elderly couple on the end. The Pannell & Toohey families (7 children between them) were very 'active' in waiting for the start of mass & providing a few laughs along the way. All of a sudden the elderly man leant across towards us & enquired, "Steve?". Steve stopped what he was doing & stared at the man for a split second before recognising him, "Uncle John!" Steve laughed, "What are you doing here?" Uncle John & his wife, Margaret, happened to be in Sydney & had been looking for a mass to attend. They'd stumbled across this small church in time for the midday service & decided to attend. I was staring at them thinking to myself, "Surely not. It couldn't be them." John then realised I was staring at him & for a short period stared back until he enquired of me, "Sam?" It was him! We greated each other with a lot more timidity than perhaps we would have liked to but considering our position at the front of a packed church some sort of discretion called for. Talk about God's perfect timing. We'd been on this journey together for so long without ever meeting face to face & then finally, without any planning, we finally met while attending my first mass on home soil. John, Margaret & I had watery eyes as the mass began & it was with much thanks to God that we entered into it. Following the mass I was whisked off to an appartment in the centre of Sydney, which had been hired for me for the duration of World Youth Day as a welcome home gift from a group of '4:01' friends from both Australia & overseas. It was rather... nice. It was very up-market & close to the World Youth Day venues. I was incredibly grateful. I only had an hour there before needing to scramble off to the first media engagement for World Youth Day with a television crew. The following day I was off to ABC Radio for a 30min interview about christian unity & the walk but most of my time was spent preparing speaking material for the four main 'gigs' for the week. The first speaking engagement was on Tuesday morning in Sydney's Hyde Park with the Disciples of Jesus Covenant Community (with whom I'm a covenant member) at the World Youth Day Cross & Icon tent. That time was predominantly spent finding friends & family (my brother Chris was there) & trying to name my friend's children who looked absolutly nothing like how I remembered them. Mind you, they didn't recognise me either. I'd brought a tub of chocolate ice-cream with me to the tent & found Rev Dave Callaghan to sit down with & share the spoils. Rev Dave was, in effect, my email spiritual advisor & all-round logistics guy throguhout the entire trip. Two spoons & a tub of Ice-cream was a satisfying way to wrap up this 'little' pilgrimage. The following day I made my way down onto Australia's iconic Bondi Beach for the Franciscan run "Come to the Water" Unity concert. The forecast for the week had been for showers but not a drop of rain fell. It was blue skies & warm sunshine pretty much all week long & Bondi Beach looked fantastic on the Wednesday afternoon. Around 15,000 people rocked up & I was wide-eyed as I sat backstage with Fr Stan Fortuna, a famous rapping Franciscan from the Bronx, and the incredible Matt Maher & his band. The whole night centred around our common unity in Christ & it was an up-lifting event. Ben Galea, the event co-cordinator, had even organised for a few thousand '4:01' wrist bands to be prduced for the evening & so with half the crowd wearing the wrist bands I was able tell a few stories & continue the invitation to pray for unity. Thursday night saw me walking out across Sydney Harbour Bridge to the north shore for a speaking engagment with the Jesuit run Magis Event. Their evening was centred around prayer intentions & so I was asked to speak about my various intentions throughout the walk. Although I walked & prayed for christian unity, I also prayed for those I met, for the individuals & the communities, those who welcomed me & those who mugged me. Everyday my prayers seemed to change in some way so there was plenty to talk about. My brother & most of the pilgrims from my home state of Tasmania had also travelled across the bridge for the event & we celebrated at the end of the night as one of the students from St Patrick's College (my old school) launched into the College hymn, "Oh Patrick Hail!". Very quickly the strong contingency of St Patrick's students, past & present, were joining together in full voice. I'm glad we stopped at the end of the first verse though because I'm still a little hazey on that 2nd one. It was as the chorus was dying down & the crowd was braking into social chatter that I noticed a young couple staring at me & smiling. I thought they were just randoms so I smiled back & continued meeting with the Tasmanian pilgrims, but then it hit me like a tonne of bricks as to who I had just smiled back at. I swung back around with my jaw nearly touching the ground. It was Damian & Tatiana Burger! A little over 12months earlier I met Damian & Tatiana in Costa Rica & they had taken the literal steps to be the first people to walk a day with me. It was on that day that we were set upon by 4 men with knives & stripped clean of all we had. Now that's a bonding moment! We'd kept in touch since but seeing them face-to-face again was priceless. As I crossed Europe Damian had emailed me a few times asking me to pray for them, that they would be able to begin a family, so it was even more of a "celebration on the spot" as Tatiana patted her tummy proudly & introduced me to child number 1. A little baby Burger... that'd be McJunior wouldn't it?? :-) It was fantastic to see them again. Coming home & meeting so many old friends from prior to walking & so many new friends I met along the way was such a blessing. I also ran into people I'd met in the USA, Canada, Poland & Austria! That evening I walked back across the Sydney Harbour Bridge with my brother, Chris, his girlfriend, Mercedes & my old cricket coach, Luke. The city looked amazing at night, particularly with thousands of pilgrims filling the streets. Friday was the biggest day of my WYD schedule as the MC for Receive the Power Live. The stations of the cross wound its way through Sydney, concluding at the main weekday venue of Barangaroo. One hour later we were on in front of around 70,000 people with a momentus baptism in the holy spirit evening that was simply awesome. Hillsong, Matt Maher, Bishop Joe Grech & most notably, the blessed sacrament. It was an incredible night for unity. It was a joint event of the Catholic Charasmatic Communities & Hillsong (an internationally renowned Pentecostal Church) combined with the prayer support of many christians from nearly every corner of the christian church in Sydney. Speaking in front of 70,000 people sure was a long way from Brazil, but I was more than happy to be there. A huge congratualtions to the event manager, my good friend Kristen Toohey, who also helped to get the Walk4one rolling. Thanks Kris (and Pete gilmore!). On Saturday afternoon I said goodbye to my flash appartment & trekked out to Randwick Racecourse with around 400,000 other pilgrims to find my little spot in the crowd for the Final Mass sleep-out. Just before the evening vigil began I met up with an old friend & we sat & chatted for hours about our seperate paths over the last 2years to get to this point. I doubt I've ever been more relaxed & content in all my life as I was that night, and that's no exageration. I didn't sleep particularly well though. It was cold & the Polish pilgrims, somewhere up the back, sang all night long! The final mass the following morning was beautiful despite being viewed through tired, weary eyes. With a final flury of good-byes over half a million people who had gathered for the mass set off through the streets of Sydney for their home cities & countries. I needed to travel over 1000km to get back to Tasmania so I teamed up with friends Paul & Mark and after a short train ride, we picked up Paul's car & headed south through the night. We took it in shifts & eventually arrived in Melbourne at close to 4am. I think. From there, Mark & I said goodbye to Paul & caught the plane across Bass Strait & finally, after so much time, touched down at home. It was fantastic to see my family again & comforting to look out across the farm once more. I had initially indicated to friends & family that I would be home in Tasmania for 6months but as I touched down in Australia the call to mission work was already pulling at me. No sooner had I landed & I'd accepted a position back with Youth Mission Team Australia working as a team manager 3500km away in the west Australian city of Perth. I spent 2 weeks at home on the farm where I built some soccer goals, helped my dad build a 2km fence & generally enjoyed being home again before packing my backpack. On the final Sunday before flying out to Perth I travelled in to the city of Launceston to go to mass with my mum at the Church of the Apostles. My feet are still pretty bad from the walk so it was with a slight limp that I entered in among familiar faces & sat down. The inside of the church hadn't changed while I'd been away & yet, somehow, it looked very different. Perhaps the change was my own? As Fr Richard began reading the Gospel I was filled, more than ever, with a great sense of this particular missionary journey being drawn to an end. Within the Catholic Church there is a three year cycle of readings so that, every three years, pretty much all of the bible is covered. As I sat listening to Fr Richard read I began to smile as I recalled the last time I'd heard this particular piece of scripture; it was in Mebourne in 2005 at St Benedict's Catholic Church. Fr Tony, an MGL, was reading & I was sitting in the pews, having not paid attention for the first part of the mass because I was distracted. My mind was racing. Only an hour before hand I'd read about the division of the church, the body of Chirst, and been so moved by it that it would in time draw me deeper into prayer & into a journey that was beyond anything I could have ever imagined. My ears pricked up during the reading of the Gospel & it was as though Fr Tony was speaking straight to me. And so it was, three years later to the day, as I sat alongside my mum in my home parish that my ears pricked up once again.
Matthew 13:44 "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field."
Three years ago I had no idea of exactly what I was 'buying' into, but it is with incredible joy & complete thanks that the doors were opened to 'sell everything' and simply walk with God. It's also with a tad sense of sadness that I log off now for the very last time, though, I have to say, I am very relieved to finally have my life out of the microscope & to be able to throw myself straight back into the missionary field - my home. A book is in the pipeworks, so please keep an eye out for it around Easter 2009. Whether there is a book or not thoguh, more importantly, please continue to pray for the unity of christians, particularly at 4:01 each day. May the Lord bless you and walk with you through life & may we all be united as one, in truth and in love. Amen, amen.

The Good, The Bad & The Bizarre!

2008-07-10T07:35:00.000-07:00

Hello from Ho Chi Minh Airport, Vietnam! I'm nearly home... No photos this week & no recount of the week, instead, just as a filler until World Youth Day, here is a quick-list look at the last 18months. Here is, the good, the bad and the bizarre.

Top 12 Highs
1. Being offered hammock hanging space in a tin shed in Panama by a young man who lived there with his wife & child. The shed was no more than 2mx3m with no running water, electricity, toilet or address. Dinner was a bread role with a slice of sausage on it. Breakfast was another bread role with a cup of lemon grass tree, which he cut fresh from the nearby field. He had nothing but gave all that he could. His daughter's toy Dino doll has accompanied me the entire trip since.
2. USA/Canada hospitality including 15days in a row across Montana & Canada where I was invited by strangers to stay in their home. Loved it!
3. Walking 148km over 3days between civilisation across the Shirley Basin in Wyoming, USA. I nearly froze, but God provided the perfect practical support in incredible ways (including peanut butter filled chocolates)!
4. Walking across the spectacularly beautiful Grand Savannah in Venezuela's south east corner.
5. The surprise visits on the road from my good friend Dave in Austria and then my parents in Spain.
6. Walking at night through an Oklahoma (USA) electrical storm that was simply mesmerizing.
7. The people I met along the Camino de Santiago in Spain; Their stories, their personalities, their company.
8. Spending a blessed & fun-filled Christmas with my brother Chris and the family Quist in Edmonton, Canada.
9. Being welcomed into the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Christian Unity :-)
10. All of the Mountain crossings! The Andes Mtns, Mexico's Cordillera Neovolcanica, The USA Rockies, The Austrian/Italian Alps & the Pyrenees.
11. The amazing hospitality in Riachao do Bacamarte, Patos & Pombal in north east Brazil just as I was starting out. Many smiles.
12. Being joined on the road by Nikki, Chris, The Quists, Justin & Wojtek (& Michal's trumpet!)

Top 12 Lows
1. Walking 66km in one day across Venezuela, running out of food & water & then coming face to face with a Puma in long grass on a quiet country road. After a tense stand-off & a slow approach by the Puma we finally parted company & I was left to sleep 3km back up the road in a clearing, severely dehydrated & a tad shaken!
2. Again in Venezuela, having a shot gun pushed against my head while eating lunch on the side of the road.
3. Being mugged at knife point & stripped clean by 4 men while walking with a small youth group in Costa Rica.
4. Being attacked by 2 drunken men in the snow on the side of a Russian highway & having to fight my way free.
5. Being hospitalised in Guatemala due to Salmonella poisoning & a subsequent Typhoid fever caused by eating some under-cooked rooster.
6. Big-toe-bleeder. Three times, for around 6-8weeks each time, having the side of my left big toe split open.
7. Developing an irregular heartbeat as a result of physical stress, rapid weight loss & fatigue.
8. Both knees seizing & both achilles tendons being strained all at the same time while in Russia.
9. Being taken to the Chief of Police in Brest, Belarus, for having crossed Belarus with an invalid Visa.
10. Waking up in a dark room in both Brazil & Honduras with a man trying to get into bed with me.
11. Being assaulted on the side of a Columbian road by a drunken man before a soldier, armed with an automatic rifle, broke up the scuffle & arrested him.
12. Dodging flying rocks, full beer cans, water balloons & verbal abuse throughout Venezuela.

Top 12 Bizarre Moments
1. Not able to find accommodation in a remote part of Texas & with dangerous animals lurking, I locked myself in a National Park disabled toilet cubicle & slept soundly. And if it started to get cold, all I had to do was reach up and hit the hand dryer... hmmm, toasty warm.
2. Being invited to speak about unity & the need for prayer at a funeral in Brazil, while the mourning family wept in the front row. Talk about a pressure moment!
3. Having the trans-Siberian railway stopped by a drunk man in the middle of Siberian wilderness because he wanted a lift. The engineer (with a hammer in hand just in case) took to him with a huge kick to the chest, flooring him in the snow. I guess that was a no.
4. Being heckled by two young men in Nicaragua as they passed by in a horse drawn cart. Heckling isn't ever nice, but there was something bizarre about being heckled from rickety old cart.
5. In a church in Colorado, USA, I was introduced to the congregation, "And we'd like to extend a very special welcome today to a travelling missionary who is with us, all the way from Tanzania, Austria!" Everyone applauded. I smiled with great difficulty.
6. Nearly crying with laughter as Nikki Harris' boots bellowed out shampoo foam during a thunder storm after she'd washed her socks the night before using... shampoo. Hmmm, do I smell 'Citrus Fresh'?
7. While walking in the rain, having a Texas gentleman stop his truck & run half way across the road & toss a heavy duty rain coat at me, "Just so you don't get sick son!" A little confused, I caught the coat as he ducked back into the driver's seat & headed off down the road, "but... I already have a raincoat."
8. Standing on the side of the Amazon River boat I caught, I was fascinated by the floating Caltex service station up ahead that all the boats were pulling into. The captain must have been fascinated by it as well because he ran straight into it & buckled the tin sheeting on its roof.
9. Being taken into the border security interrogation room at both ends of the USA. Nothing beats the moment when the first questioning officer re-entered the room fitting a pair of surgical gloves on. With a snap of the gloves I looked up with open eyes, "Oh no." The officer looked at me, "No, no! I just need to go through your bag..."
10. Eating congealed cow's blood mixed with sugar and sheep guts on a bed of rice while in Brazil. Anyone for McDonalds?
11. Watching a lady in Venezuela try to pull a large open umbrella through a small doorway & jamming it. She turned around, rotated the umbrella & pulled again, of course jamming it once more. My eyes widened, "Did she just rotate a round object to fit it through a rectangular doorway?" A third time she rotated the umbrella & this time pulled harder. Nothing. Finally, a hand emerged from the other side & twisted the umbrella onto an angle so it could fit through the opening. I was left alone in the street with my mouth ajar. "Did I really just see that?"
12. While walking in Poland, a young man, Wojtek, joined me for the day. In the late afternoon a gaggle of geese flew over us with no formation. I yelled out, "Form a V, it's easier!" In that very moment the geese quickly arranged themselves into a flying 'T'. Wojtek laughed and yelled out to them, "No! He said a V, not a T!" We couldn't believe our eyes as the 'T' slid into a flying 'V'. Glad we could help...

God is good, God is great. For all of the above, the bad included as well as all the things that have gone without mention, I am grateful to God for his provision and love. I complained a lot, I frowned a lot, I stuffed up a lot, but I have been blessed out of my socks. Thank you to everyone who has supported this mission in any way, shape or form. I hope to see you for the penultimate blog from Sydney next week. God bless & peace be with you.
"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." Pr 19:21

The End of the Road

2008-07-06T07:06:00.000-07:00

After 568days, 9350km on trains, 9824km in aircraft & 15,259km on foot, the journey from Cape Branco, Brazil, to Cape Finisterre in Spain is over. It is done. Standing on a cliff ledge overlooking the Atlantic Ocean on Cape Finisterre yesterday evening I was trying to make sense of what has taken place in these last 18months but the only thing I could fathom in the moment was that the sunset was beautifully simple. A week earlier, Finisterre was still just a hopeful possibility. My gear was failing very quickly & the race was on to finish walking before it all finished working. Four out of five zips on my backpack had broken, two rips had opened up requiring a mixture of running & blanket stitches with fine fishing line, the backpack shoulder straps where dangerously close to pulling apart completely, I'd worn 3 holes in my only shirt & the walking poles had worn all the way to the plastic protective guard. Basically, everything was being handled with great care. Even my plastic spoon broke in half. Good thing I was carrying a spare. It was a 3day walk from Samos to Santiago de Compostela & it was very satisfying to make the final 30km alongside Oisin (the Irishman) after we once again walked into each other at a small village cafe. We had a spring in our step, however, both being ahead of schedule, we also had the comfort of being able to enjoy his final day & not push ourselves too hard. For Oisin, Santiago was the end of the journey. As we entered the centre of the historic city along its narrow cobble stone streets, we met my dad standing outside the Cathedral, waiting for me as we had planned a week earlier. This was now Oisin's time to reflect on his journey & so we thanked one another for the time we had spent together in conversation, prayer & silence while walking the Camino & said farewell. While Oisin's journey was at an end, I still had 90km to complete with mum & dad hoping to join me all the way to the Atlantic. We set off the following morning, enjoying cool overcast conditions for most of the day. That night mum & dad booked me into a hotel with them & we ventured down to the supermarket to buy our dinner for the night. Dad suggested we buy a couple of pizzas & cook them in the oven in our room. We'd all seen the hot plates & sink so agreed that it was a great idea. None of us though, had noticed that there was no oven. And so it was that on the 2nd last night, dad & I tried with great difficulty to cook those stupid frozen pizzas on the hot plates. And why wasn't mum helping? Well, she was too busy laughing at us, to the point of tears. We got there eventually, after having to flip the pizzas upside down to cook the tops as well. It didn't look like pizza in the end but if you closed your eyes & concentrated hard, it still tasted like it. Just don't ask about the no-oil, no-salt, no-sauce chips we cooked as well. This is why I eat canned tuna with vegtables. The following day of walking began as the previous had ended, cool & overcast. Half an hour later though, a cold shower swept in sending us diving for our wet weather gear. That shower finally stopped 10hours later after we'd walked 34km through pounding, howling wind that sent the rain at us sideways. A huge low pressure system had swept down off the North Atlantic & blanketed north-western Spain. None of us were prepared for the drop in temperature & we all began to lose feeling in our fingers as we traversed some of the more open & exposed sections of the track. The entire area is overflowing with Tasmanian Blue-gums & a noxious weed called gorse, both of which thrive in our area of Tasmania. The vegetation, coupled with the southern ocean-like weather led dad to observe that he could have stayed at home for this! Within a few hours our boots were saturated, our feet were squelching on every step & the water was whisking off noses, chins, fingers & backpacks. It was wet & it was windy. We were so wet, cold & uncomfortable that we opted to not stop for lunch but to just keep our heads down & soldier on. Late in the afternoon we eventually made it to a small town with a hotel. After some long showers & a lot of make-shift clotheslines being built we ventured down to the bar for dinner. Dad was shivering badly when we entered the hotel but was now more relaxed & warming up. As he ate his soup he commented that it was warming him up nicely but a few minutes later he was begining to find it uncomfortably hot & had to stop eating & lethargicly remove his jumper. He began to look flustered as his body continued to heat up & he had to excuse himself to the open doorway where he sat in the cool breeze trying to cool down. Mum wasn't saying a word but was watching with very wide eyes. Was he about to pass-out, vomit or have a heart attack? It was a tense few minutes as his temperature continued to rise but thank God, he regained his colour & after some deep breathes was keen to rejoin the meal at the table. I told mum that the same thing had happened to me in Mexico, but that wasn't much comfort at all. So, dad nearly self-combusted, other than that, nice meal... The final day began in sunshine & mum & dad were both keen to push on & were feeling pretty good. My camera however, was going the way of my backpack & threw a hissy-fit at having been exposed to moisture the day before. The dvd drive wouldn't fire, the lcd screen lost a colour & the camera was reporting a disc error. For a small time there it was looking like no photos or video footage of the final day would be taken. I am very thankful that all of a sudden the camera kicked into gear &, minus a legible lcd screen, was ready to go for one final day. As I walked & prayed through the final 35km my mind kept drifting back through the various events that have stuck in my mind from this journey & it was beginning to sink in that this was it. This was the end. I haven't ever re-read a single blog entry so some events had faded from memory a tad as I spend most of my time on the now, but as I walked & pondered certain situations from the last 18months I kept remembering more & more. Some made me smile, even laugh, & others caused me to breathe deeply & shake my head in disbelief or amazement (basically that I was still alive). Mum & dad set their own pace so I had plenty of time by myself as I waited at hill tops for them. Mind you, mum would have made it a lot quicker if she didn't stop & pick flowers. "Mum, please... Cape Finesterre?" Mum & dad made it through the day a lot 'easier' than the previous day with the added aid of 2 Tasmanian Blue-gum walking sticks each to help them along the way. With the weather on our side, we made more frequent stops & ate well. By the time we made it to Fisterra, the town at the beginning of Cape Finisterre, mum & dad were keen to call it a day, leaving me with the final 3km climb up along the cape to the 'end of the earth'. I continued praying right up onto the cape's steep, rocky end & with a view of the expansive Atlantic Ocean from 100m above, I climbed down along the face to a quiet ledge about halfway down. There were numerous tourists at the top & I was keen to find some quiet space to simply sit & be. There was still a few hours before sunset so I just sat & waited... with a big bowl of cereal & cold milk I'd carried up in my backpack. At first, 'the end' seemed a little hollow & it was difficult to come to terms with what 'the end' actually meant. As more & more time passed by I began to appreciate more & more the journey that has brought me to this point & in particular, the Lord's provision & love that has sustained me. All the way back in Brazil I had placed a set of rosary beads on the fence at Cape Branco, with the intention of doing the same here in Spain. The rosary is taught very heavily against by many chritians & so for me it stands as a strong symbol of both the prayer that unites us & the division that seperates us. There was nothing obvious to hang the rosary from though, so I opted to grabed one of my walking poles & jam it down in between two large stones over-looking the ocean. I tied the rosary beads onto the end of it & left it to hang in the sea breeze. I prayed, for the final time on this particular journey, "Holy Father, please unite all christians in truth & in love, for the glory of your name & for the salvation of souls. Please bless Pope Benedict XVI, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Patriarches of the eastern churches, those serving on the World Council of Churches & all the worlds chirsitan leaders with Faith, Hope, Love & Wisdom, so that they may better lead us to you & into unity with one another. Amen" Afterwards, I stood in silence before entering into my own one-on-one personal prayer time, simply thanking God for all that has happened & re-committing myself for whatever may lay ahead. It was actually during this time that I finally felt as though the walk had come to a close. This journey had finally come to an end. I sat on my rock again & was excited to see a few pilgrims I'd met earlier in the week making their way down the cape edge. Vin from Brazil, was quick to whip his clothes out of his backpack, bundle them up & throw a match on them. They went up very quickly. The other pilgrims followed suit & I wasn't far behind. I clambered over the rocks to them & after some cheerful greetings, I ripped my battered shirt off & tossed it on the fire as well. It burnt very quickly. I'm glad I didn't throw my jacket on the fire as well, it was mighty cold out there. Vin came down to my little spot (the view was brilliant from there) & he sat silently for 30mins or so before beginning his way back up to the other guys. Just as he turned his back I saw a dolphin break the water out off the cape. I called out to Vin, "Dolphin!" & he quickly turned on his heals & made his way back down. As he did I couldn't help but think that the glimpse I had caught of it was too far out from the cape & that perhaps it was a lot bigger than I first thought. With both of us watching intently, the 'dolphin' broke the water once more, only this time, we could see that it was in no way a dolphin. It was a Humpback Whale. One massive Humback Whale. It didn't resurface again but it was an awesome sight none-the-less. The sun finally set at 10:20pm & with a hand full of pilgrims watching on from their own little spaces on the end of the cape a cheer went up & a lot of thumbs in the air to one another accompanied with satisfied smiles. One by one, we climbed back up, said goodbye & headed into the twilight on our seperate paths. The walk4one had come to a close.
I intend to write 3 more blog entries before calling it a day here on the internet. One entry from Paris next week (a quick-list look at the ins & outs of the last 18 months), an entry from World Youth Day in Sydney & then one quick sign-off from home in Tasmania & that's it.
I am particularly thankful to every person who has encourged me along this journey, who has prayed for me & with me, who has got me back on my feet after muggings & bashings, who has pointed me in the right direction when I was lost or fed me when I was hungry. Although I posted a blog each week there has obviously been a lot that went unsaid. I've had to learn to be thankful for what I didn't want to happen & in particular to forgive those who stuck guns or knives in my face or tried to take from me whatever it was I had. No matter how often I forgive those guys in Russia for trying to beat the living daylights out of me (for example), I still feel the need quite regularly to once again let go of my anger towards them & desire to become a Kung-Fu master & return to their bar & toagain forgive them & refocus back on God. I'm relieved to be able to let my body rest now as well. The reporting of the physical tole was sometimes masked due to my concern over being told to stop (stuborn, yes). Through Russia & Belarus particularly, I was suffering from an irregular heartbeat where my heart was trying to pump blood without having drawn any in. This in itself is normal & not too much to worry about so long as it doesn't occure more than a few times a day. I had a few sleepless nights though as it 'mis-fired' nearly every 30seconds for hours on end. It wasn't particularly pleasant. In fact, it was down right scarey. The three major factors for that condition are rapid weight lose, stress & physical fatigue; I satisfied all three criteria. My greatest battle though has probably been against myself. God is patient, very patient. The other issue that raised its head early on in this walk is that I am Catholic. It didn't take too long for me to realise that the invitation to pray for christian unity was easily lost amidst theolgical arguement or a desire to 'convert' me or vice versa so I began to simply introduce myself to people according to what I was doing. A few times, after explaining the mission & extending the invitation the people I was talking to agreed emphatically with the call to pray for unity & then proceeded to heatedly pull apart the un-godly Catholics, unaware that I was 'one of them'. Time & time again I had to simply bite my tongue & refocus the conversation on prayer & re-evangelisation. One particular time I wanted to go to mass on a Sunday but was staying with an evangelical family, to whom there was no difference between their church & mine. I understood & was deeply moved by their acceptance, but I'm Catholic because I believe that the eucharist is indeed the body & blood, soul & divinity of Jesus Christ, not because the Catholic Church was simply the nearest available house of God. I loved being with them during their church service but I felt unfulfilled without the eucharist & so I slipped away aftwards & ran through the town to find mass. I always felt as though I was treding a fine line & it was difficult at times to not offend. I haven't been walking praying for the unity of those christians who have the same beliefs as me or act upon their faith in the same manner, but I often suspected that I was accepted on that basis. Even within the Catholic Church. And yes, I realsed that I viewed other christians with tinted glasses according to their church background rather than on who they were. It simply drove home how seperated christians are. At times people heard my invitation & instinctively asked what church I was from. My answer then gave way to either instant acceptance or intant dismissal. It was always a challenge that drove me into a lot of thought & prayer but rarley made the blog for you to read. A radio interviewer wrapped up his program & interview with me by saying, "Yes, well in the end, I guess all that matters is that we are brothers & sisters in the Lord." I thought about it for a long time afterwards as I encountered more & more "What church are you from?" and I began to disagree with the interviewers closing remark. I began to conclude that "No, it's not a matter of "In the end we are all just brothers & sisters in the Lord & that's all that matters", but instead that "To begin with, we are all brothers & sisters in the Lord." It's a starting point, not a finishing point. It's a point to move forward from. I guess the one big crunch point that I've learnt along this journey is that unity is not a place we reach, but an action we are involved in & live out. I guess personally the big change has been that my passion for unity centred around theology (the truth) as I began in Brazil, but it's unity in love that has captured me throughout this walk. Unity in truth still holds its place as a present day emergency, but it was Christ's love that was most evidently missing in the world. Of all the poverties encountered, it was the poverty of love that shocked me the most & has challengd me personally. Please continue to pray for unity, please continue to pray for me & please continue to pray for one another. Thank you & God bless, Sam.
"I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." John 17:23
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 1Cor 13:13

The Fellowship, Stinging Nettle & Lisps

2008-06-28T22:29:00.000-07:00

Hello from Samos, a Benedictine Monastery village 120km west of Santiago de Compestela. It's 7:30am & I've found interent access so I'll take the chance to quickly write before entering into the final week of walking. Today is day 562 of 568. Not far now. I'm nearly jumping out of my skin with the prospect of stepping onto a plane bound for Australia in a very short time. I flashed my Australian drivers license to some guys I was having dinner with last night & they refused to believe that the photo was of me. They couldn't stop laughing. 18months of walking can change a person. I had a wonderful week on the road this past week as I met an energetic group of 18 to 30 year olds from all around the world who have become friends on the Camino & stuck together. I ate & walked with them for 3 days, enjoying the diverse conversations & ways of travelling. Two of the girls from England loved to sing while they walked, two of the guys from New York loved to rap, sing harmonies & talk about future plans while they walked & others enjoyed to have quiet time of contemplation but they'd always meet back up at the end of the day to share dinner. They have declared themselves the 'Fellowship' & have thus handed out names to each person according to JRR Tolkins 'The Lord of the Rings'. I'm pleased to report that I snared the title of Strider & anyone who has read the books or seen the movies will understand that I scored big on that one. Mind you, Philip from England was named Golim & was chuffed to bits! I spent the first day walking with Philip & Pat, two young Anglican fellas who have just completed a year of full monastic life with the Franciscans along with their friend Julian. The Camino is their re-entry into the 'outside world' as it has been, to a point, for me as well. We spoke at great length about re-entry, prayer, theology & the Camino itself & perhaps the resounding conversation that has stayed with me was after Philip commented about the use of churches here. Philip had entered the Cathedral in Leon to spend some time in prayer within a building he described as "Having been built to draw us into intimate pray" but found it difficult being the only one praying. The Cathedral was packed with pilgrims taking photos, buying souvenirs & in general, talking very loudly. He felt like he was back in the Jewish temple just before Jesus came in & over-turned all the trader's tables. The conversation that persued lasted a number of days (on & off) & we began to look at the Camino itself. There are a lot of people here 'searching' but unless what you're searching for is historical information for your next architectural project, the pilgrims are pretty much left to their own devices. In past years I might have convinced myself that there is very little Phil & I could do to help people focus on the spiritual side of the pilgrimage but after the last 18 months I might just give this one a bit more thought. On the third day of walking with some of the 'fellowshipers' Philip & I had concluded another discussion about the Camino when we decided to completly change the mood & show Elizabeth, a young lady from the USA who was walking with us, how to play cricket. I had a small foam ball in my bag & Phil simply adjusted his walking pole into a comfortable bat before I bowled to him on the sidewalk in a small town called Villafranca. Phil swung through & connected so well that the little foam ball disappeard skywards. It was about now that I realised that playing cricket in front of the village's historic castle-like town hall wasn't a particularly great place to play. Location, location, location. The ball canoned into the stone work only just above the top window of the 3storey 'castle' before lobbing back out into the main street, bouncing right in front of the only car travelling down the road, bringing it to a quick stop. Phil, laughing uncontrolably, slinked away quickly leaving me to retrieve his handy-work form the middle of the road. Nice one Phil. He still maintains it was the best hit of his life. We left Villafranca soon after & along with Elizabeth, played soccer/hockey along the deserted country road all the way to our destination 10km further afield. The days have been searingly hot lately & that day was no different. A medium sized river ran through the tiny town so we took the opportunity to relax in the, as it turned out, absolutley freezing waters of the mountain river. After nearly half and hour of wading through the water skimming the ball back & forth to one another I noticed a flash of light right next to my foot. I reached down & pulled out a three-prong fish hook & held it aloft. Philip & I decided it was time to hop out & as we clammered up onto the bank I commented that the way this walk around the world has gone, in the past I would've found the hook by treading on it. I then leaned back & placed my left arm directly into stinging nettles... You just have to laugh some times. I just can't win. I was left with a sting that lasted well into the evening but it was, after all, better than having a fish hook through my toe. That evening I said goodbye to the 'fellowship' & next morning headed off at 5am for the final mountain ascent of this journey. Just as I completed the mountain traverse & was pulling into a town 42km from the place I started at, I bumped back into Oisin (the Irishman) who has also been pushing into some long distance walking. We looked around for a Saturday evening mass but concluded that the best option was to walk another 10km down the road to Samos where there was a Benedictine Monasterey. Two of the pilgrims we meet along the way turned out to be priests so it had a great sense of the 'old ways' as we journied together towards the celebration of mass. There are more & more pilgrims on the road everyday now & personal space can be difficult to find. I've witnessed a number of clashes of personality this week as well. One pilgrim, Dean, is doing it on horseback & while I was chatting with him on the side of the street in a tiny village a shop owner came out & opened up with the most profane language as he told Dean & his horse where to go. Dean was incensed & handed the reigns to a German pilgrim standing nearby as he went into the shop after the shopkeeper. The arguement was heated & the poor old German pilgrim had no idea what to do with the horse. He looked up at everyone else standing there & simply commented, "I'm holding a horse." Dean was eventually back & road off quietly (into the sunset). At other times I've seen pilgrims & hostel owners enter heated exchanges but the pearlers are always the ones between pilgrims at 5:30 in the morning. Namely, those trying to sleep until 6:30am & those who couldn't give a stuff if anyone is trying to sleep or not. For many, I think it's the first time they've stepped outside their own home & the concept of 'other people' just hasn't sunk in yet. The funny one was while I was talking with Evan from New York. We were chatting in a hostel kitchen when a young man came in, grabed a glass, turned the tap on & had a drink of water. He then walked back out, leaving the tap running full. The look on Evan's face was priceless as he contemplated what he was looking at before reaching over & turning the tap off. He was speechless. The other funny thing I've had to get used to here is the language. I learnt a lot of Spainish while walking through South & Central America but I hadn't realised how different the accent is here. Throughout the America's, the number 5 & 11, for example, are pronounced as "sin-co" & "on-ze" respectively. Here though, it's pronounced as "thin-co" & "on-the". I couldn't believe it that all these people had lisps! "That's three people in a row now who have a lisp! What's going on?" Hmmm, I've now learnt that the accent is quiet different... and no one has a lisp. So, from here I have around 4days of walking to Santiago de Compestela where I will meet with mum & dad again before heading off for the final 3days out to Cape Finesterre on the Atlantic coastline. A lot of prayer still to be prayed, but the kilometres on foot will possibly be over be this time next week. See you then I hope. God bless, Sam.
"The end of a matter is better than its beginning, & patience is better than pride." Ecclesiastes 7:8
ps: A big hello to everyone in Malta!

Family, a Serpants Head & Relativism

2008-06-21T11:08:00.000-07:00

Hello from Ledigos, somewhere in between Burgos & Leon. 'Somewhere' for the simply reason that I spend a good portion of my day not having a single idea of where I am. Two mornings in a row now the sun has inexplicably risen in the 'north'. I have thus concluded that I have no sense of direction out here amongst the wheat-covered hills, I'm just following the signs to Santiago. This past week had a huge suprise install that had me somewhat speechless. I left Santo Domingo just after sunrise & walked out towards the egde of town with 2 Irishmen I'd met the day before. As we approached a quiet intersection in the tiny village I spotted a man & a woman standing on the opposite side of the road with their backpacks on the ground beside them as they sipped their morning coffee. I thought to myself, "Wow, that woman looks like my mum," & continued chatting with Pat & Oisin. As we crossed the road though the man & woman motioned towards me & smiled. I don't know how long it took to register but a state of confusion set in as I finally recognised them. It was indeed, my mum & dad, standing on the corner of the tiny Spanish village, sipping coffee. The last time I saw them was in November of 2006 so it has been a long time, shall we say, between drinks. I was so confused. It's all part of a conspiracy that seems to grow larger everytime I talk to someone. I had received an email 2weeks ago from a good friend, Luke McCormack, informing me that he had a good mate over here in Europe who would be keen to catch me as he passed through Burgos. Luke told me to be at the Cathedral steps at 9am on my rest day but didn't pass on any contact details for 'Stephen & Jenny Russell', his friends. I smelled a rat straight away. Luke is meticulous when it comes to planning so I immediately assumed that I would in fact be meeting Luke himself instead of these suspicious friends of his who have no contact details. What I didn't realise was that Luke was a part of something a little better thought out than I gave him credit for. My parents had flown to Europe for there first holiday since about 1949, taken a cruise to Malta & then followed my itinerary to Santo Domingo... & waited. If they missed me, the Cathedral in Burgos had been set up as the back-up. Between leaving Tasmania & arriving in Santo Domingo I happened to be a good son & phone home. Twice. In relation to mum & dad's where abouts my brother, Chris, & older sister, Sophie, successfully lied to me & so it came as one almighty confusing shock to see them standing there. After a very quick 1hr reunion on the side of the street I was back into the walking as mum & dad headed via bus to the next town to organise some accomodation & food fpr the evening. It has been fantastic to see them. Unfortunately dad has been hit by some form of gastro & so spent the first few days being very sick. I've continued walking & they've continued busing it to the next destination. I'm out of bus territory tonight so we'll meet back up tomorrow again hopefully. Mum & dad did make it 'onto the track' for yesterday's walk though & with a day up my sleeve we were able to take it slow as dad fought out 26km in 32degC heat. Not bad for a guy who has spent most of the past 7days either in bed or locked in the bathroom. Mum had one pace & it wasn't dad's so every so often she had to sit & smell the flowers until we caught back up. Dad nicked my walking poles for the day & loved them. I'm glad he did because I love them too. Guess what your getting for christmas dad? Get your own poles... :-) Mum & dad staying here in Spain until the end of the journey & will duck off everynow & then to be tourists but return in time for the final week. When I was a little tacker I could always rely on mum & dad to cheer me over the finish line no matter what I was doing; and they're still doing it. It's a great way to bring in the end of this particular journey. Haha, I have to comment though on mum's first 2 questions - "So are you going to continue these adventures or have you been cured?" and "So... who are you going to marry when you get home?" Does anyone else have a mum like this?? Dad just sits there & smiles. Now, the 2 Irishmen I mentioned, Pat & Oisin, they've played a huge role this week as well as we walked for 3 or 4 days side by side. They'd met only a day before I met them but the 3 of us had similar backgrounds & enjoyed each others company. Both are family men so spent a good majority of their time talking of their loved ones. I invited them to join me in some time of prayer as we walked & they eagerly accepted, which for Pat was the first time in a very long time. We prayed for around 15minutes that first day & then found ourselves having a discussion about prayer itself. While we were chatting away, Oisin, who is terrified of snakes, stepped right on top of a poisonous adder but thankfully had snapped his foot away before it was able to get it's fangs anywhere near him. The snake was writhing & as Oisin backed further away I checked the snake out to find that Oisin had split the adder's side wide open. It was a fatal wound so I told the guys I'd put it out of it's misery. I lowered my boot carefully & pushed down hard, crushing its head. Then Pat piped up, "Hey guys! This is really significant! Here we are, having just prayed together & then talking about prayer & you've crushed the serpants head!" Pat's eyes were wide open (Oisin was keen to still move further away), "I have to tred on it too!" The poor snake was pretty much dead but Pat was as keen as mustard to be a part of what was a very symbolic moment. Whereas I lowered my boot cautiously onto the snake, Pat practically jump on it & vigorously twisted his foot from side to side to make sure the job was done. As he lifted his foot triumphantly though it was with a certain amount of confusion that we were left with nothing but the gravel road. "Umm, Pat, I think it's stuck to the bottom of your boot, mate." I've never seen a guy shake his leg so quickly & yes, it dig eventually peel off & flop to the ground. As 'co-incidental' as it may have been, it did stand as a very symbolic moment for us, particularly for Pat who was rediscovering prayer. Over the next few days we continued to walk, talk & pray for christian unity & in particular, their families. Pat only had a week here in Spain so has had to end his time here & return to Limerick but Oisin is still striding out & getting faster & faster. I met Oisin on a hill top over-looking a vast expanse of wheat & barley fields & he was struggling badly with a siezed knee. He's a physical education teacher & not too keen on the whole giving up notion & has actually now ploughed through the pain into some more painless days. He's a pretty tough nut. There are many people out here walking to Santiago de Compostela & so the conversations obviously vary greatly. In the last 4days I've had a conversation with an atheist who believed that praying for christian unity was intolerant of other people's beliefs, a christian who believed that praying for unity & being Catholic was hypocritcal & an agnostic who wanted to know why on earth I'd put so much effort into anything associated with the Church. The first conversation was difficult because the fellow was a very philosophical & 'spiritual' man who, I thought, didn't actually believe in anything. He believed that Jesus was a wise man but that his message had been twisted by Christians. "The most important thing," he told me, "is that we do good in the world." I told him I thought that his view was very relativistic & by whose standards was he going to do good?" He actually conceeded that point but that was the only one. It was a very long discussion that finally ended with him saying, "Let us breathe deeply & be at one," and me saying, "God bless." He thought I was being intolerant of other belief systems & I thought he was ignoring them & was looking for spirituality without the need for faith or responsibility. We swaped reading material & addresses so the conversation may not be over yet. It's always difficult to enter a conversation that begins with an accusation but the third conversation began with a question so it was already on a differnt footing. With my mum & dad snug in their hotel for the night, I took up my spot on the pilgrim house (Albergue) floor on one of the mattreses. The young lady setting up next to me knew who I was & after I'd commented about the long night ahead due to the already resounding snors echoing through the room, she began to ask a few questions about what I was doing & why. That was at about 10pm. By 2:30am we were still whispering back & forth about God, the Church, prayer & theology but the old eye lids were starting to get heavy. I'd organised to meet mum & dad at 7am so I was carrying a thumping headache that morning as another day on the road wavered precariously on only 4hours sleep. That happened to be the day mum and dad joined me though so I was happy to be walking at dad's pace. I've noticed that the number of people signed up to pray at 4:01 has jumped by over 50 this week (compared to the normal 5 ot 6 a week) so for whatever reason this is, thankyou to whoever may have had a hand in spreading the invitation! It's 10:40pm right now & time for me to be in bed so I'll post some photos & jump to it. Goodnight & God bless! Sam
"I have given you authority to trample on snakes & scorpions & to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you." Luke 10:19

Spilled Blood & God's Goodness

2008-06-14T03:27:00.000-07:00

Spain... the final frontier. A belated hello from Lagroño in northern Spain! Sorry for the omission last week & thankyou for the prayers & concern of those wondering where I was. It was simply a case of no internet available, so thankyou to Chris for posting a blog on my behalf (I should've known he wouldn't be able to not help himself to a few personal side comments). So, 2 weeks have past since I left Toulouse & it feels like a month has past. The first night out from Toulouse I had a young man, Nils, find me accomodation in the church offices (thanks mate) where I was able to quickly check my email. Confusingly, I discovered a stack of emails either congratulating me or questioning me about my engagement! I have a facebook account & I had, while in Toulouse, changed me facebook 'relationship status' to "Engaged to my backpack", but all that showed up on my facebook profile was "engaged" so I had to very quickly difuse the bomb! With that out of the way & my profile changed I headed on towards Auch where I met with a fellow called Charles & his good mate Jean. Charles is leading the Toulouse World Youth Day pilgrim group & had been notified of me passing through by Tim Davis & a french girl, Sophie, who work for the Melbourne Archdiocese. Charles was on the ball quickly & drove out to meet me for a restaraunt dinner 100km from his home. Jean lived down the road from Auch so Charles had called him up & organised for me to stay with him & his wife on their family estate. The estate was fantastic & their hospitality supurb. It was very close to being a holiday! Quickly back to the restaraunt dinner, Charles & Jean were keen for me to try some local produce so I had a choice of Duck's liver or garlic Snails. I chose the snails. And it actually tasted all right. Not sure I'll ever order them again but hey, if I ever have a desperate night out in the wilderness again perhaps I won't go hungry? So long as I have access to boiling water & a bucket full of garlic. Jean organised for me to meet the mayor of a town I was passing through the next day, Mirande, & so a little media attention was given to the walk & thankfully the oppurtunity to extend the inivtation to pray for unity went out just that little bit further. A gentleman I met at Jean's organised accomodation for me in Tarbes (the next town) with the Colonel family & Charles organised accomodation for me for 2days in Lourdes (the next town again). So all up it was one of the most spoilt weeks for accomodation since Montana & Canada. As I was approaching Lourdes I did have a bit of a slip up that could have ended worse than it did. As is normal when being human, I needed a toilet break, but with nothing in sight & a very steep embankment on both sides of the road with thick forest along them, I had to opt for the one path 'out of sight' that I could find - a steep, 10m high concrete culvert where the road passed over a small river. I left my backpack & poles at the top & began my descent. After about, say, 50cm, I got that sinking feeling that I had misjudged the steepness & with an inocent, "Oh-ohh" my feet shot out from under me & I slide on my back down the conrete slippery slide. The next problem was that the hole at the base of the concrete culvert where the water flows through was around 5m wide with only a 1m section of conrete actually touching down on the ground. As I slid down with greater speed I was slightly on target for the tunnel edge & so to manoeuvre away from a fall off the edge into the river I had to use my hands to steer myself. Concrete:1, Skin on my Hands:Nil. My hands weren't designed for steering down concrete slabs. Thankfully though, I touched down with a gentle thud at the bottom corner, away from the drop into the river & with only slightly bloodied hands. Yes, they were bleeding & may I say, I was left with quite a sting indeed! I tried to shake the pain out (it sort of worked) & then lamented my descent & how on earth I was ever going to climb back up. I quickly went to the toilet (that is what I'd gone there for after all) & then tried to scale back to me gear but didn't ever make it past the first metre. The option left for me was to walk back up through the steep blacberry-covered forest floor. Bleeding hands on the way down, bleeding legs on the way back up. Well, that was fun. What stupid thing can I do around the next corner? I bought a new backpack cover this week as my old one was no longer water proof. The only one available though was an army disposal's camouflage cover so I'm a little concerned about my visibilty from behind while it's raining. I'm wearing khaki trousers so from the back I look like not much at all (photo to the right). It has actually rained a lot over the past few weeks so it's come in handy & it works well so for that I'm very pleased. While staying with the Colonel family in Tarbes I had a late shower just as they were heading off to bed & in a moment of un-co-ordination managed to lose my grip on the soap & as if in slow motion it made a direct line for my enflamed, fleshy left big toe (yes, the toe is still there but only just). As it hurtled towards my constant agony I snatched my foot away to the side but only succeeded in smashing it into the shower wall with uncompromising force. Blood interspersed with the shower's water immediately & I was left nearly convulsing as I silently screamed the worse shower scene scream since 'Psycho'. A silent scream because everyone was going to bed, but my mouth was agasp for at least 10seconds & my body didn't stop shaking for another minute. It was a long time before that soap block was picked up again. Once in Lourdes I settled in for a tightly scheduled rest day with a series of tasks needing attention. Firstly was a series of forms for a backstage pass at World Youth Day (I'm speaking on a few of the days) & then the processing of all the dvd's from this journey so far. The original camera, which used tape, was stolen in Costa Rica & replaced with a dvd camera. I didn't know that I had to formalise each disc before sending them back to Australia so poor Brendan (Mr Editor) had to bundle them all up & send them to me in France. I collected them, finalised them & bundled them back to him so hopefully something will be ready for World Youth Day. Lourdes is a fascinating place where a series of apparitions & thousands of miracles have seen people flocking to the place for nearly 150years. The basic gist is that Mary, the mother of Jesus, in a particular appariton, asked a young girl to do penace for the return of sinners to Christ. The act of penace was to drink from a muddy pool, which the young girl did, & from there burst a spring of natural fresh water, which continues to flow today. Like a modern day 'Serpent on the Staff' (book of Exodus) there have been thousands of healings attributed to pouring on or submersion in the water with the expectation of healing. There were people everywhere. Ten's of thousands of people; Young & old, walking, limping, in wheelchairs, on crutches, with problems left, right & centre. I fitted in well. I went to a Chinese mass first of all & then made my way down to the running spring. I'd washed all my clothes the night before & they still hadn't dried so despite it being only 8degC I was pottering around in shorts & flip-flops. I'd been very catiously making my way through the crowds trying to keep my toe out of harm's way but at last I was standing on the edge of the running stream. I actually didn't want to even try at first but after a quick prayer & a "Jesus, I trust you" I decided that I'd better get my toe in there if I was to finish this walk. I slipped my left flip-flop off & let the water pour over it... & waited. I'm not sure what I was expecting but nothing happened. I prayed again, that what ever happened I would accept, but that I would like it to finally be healed, please. I limped on from Lourdes towards the beautiful Pyrenees & at around that time you should've been hearing from me but it was the wrong part of the world to try & find internet access. I couldn't even find a mass that weekend!! I walked 20-predawn-km to make it to a possible mass on the Sunday morning only to find that it was being held in another town out of my reach. There was confirmation (baptism in the Spirit) that weekend so everyone had come together in one place. One place where I was not. Once at the foot of the Pyrenees I was told that my destination the following day on top of the mountain range had closed that very day for the rest of the season (it's a ski village). This left me with 2 options; sleep in my tent at 1800m above sea level or walk 53km across the Pyrenees to the first major Spanish town. I opted to walk & so with an early night I rose at 4:30am & started my ascent in the dark. It was fantastic. It was seriously supurb. The road I was walking along had an average of only one car every 30mins & it was surrounded by the most breathe-taking mountains, vallies & rivers I've passed through on this whole walk. The steepness of the road was also breathe-taking, literally. At around 1300m, while I was spending some time in prayer, I walked up into the thick clouds & continued upwards. I could hear cow bells ringing at times but nothing else. It was cool, damp, white & quiet. By the time I made my first stop at 11am I was sitting at 1804m above sea level & 27km from my point of origin. Not a bad first leg. It was getting colder by the minute though & without my Canada/Russia winter gear I resorted to wearing my spare socks on my hands as I commenced the downward section into Spain. Eventually I descended from the clouds & was met by an awesome view of a tree filled valley with rocky escarpments surrounding it & 5 eagles doing circle-work over the far mountain. Then the clouds swept down & I was once again surrounded by 'whiteness'. A few hours later I was back in sunshine & looking down a steep, winding section of road that wound back & forth for around 3km. The section in between the first 2 bends was cushy mountain grass so without too much hesitation (& obviously having already forgotten about my cement descending attempt) I jumped the saftey barrier & like one of those Frenchman chasing the roling disc of cheese down the mountain side & gathered speed with ease. Unlike the Frenchman who chase the roling disc of cheese down a mountain side, I did it with finese & didn't fall! I also did it slower, but it was so much fun. All the pressure was going through my heals so the toe was fine for once but after a few succesful traverses I was faced with a thickening pine forest that offered new obstacles. As I crossed the road into a very thick section I wondered if this was bear territory (the Pyrenees are home to many bears). I thought it unlikely & continued on, weaving through the trees. There a fewer things that get me out of a happy 'mountain descending' frame of mind than trotting past enormous foot-prints that have made a 30cm depression in soft ground that I'm only making a 5cm depression in. So... looks like it's the road from here! I shot out of there quicker than you can say, "You idiot" & found myself standing on the edge of a 4m drop down to the roadside. Hmmm, my dumbness surrounds me. The road had been cut into the mountain side for that entire length of road so after a quick contemplation of walking back up the mountain side through the soggy 'what are those footprints' ground I thankfully found a pine tree growing from the roadside up along the face of the road cutting. I reached out, grabbed hold & climbed down. Note to self: Let go of the walking poles before climbing down a tree - two hands makes it easier. How on earth am I still alive? Anyway, I was on my way again & still enjoying the whole 53km. I continued to pray & of course, sing (great echoes in places). It was a very easy place to give thanks to God. Spain was imediately different to France with the forests & green pastures giving way to dry, thorn bush covered slopes. I'm now on the Camino de Santiago for the final 3weeks of the journey but I've had trouble with accomodation over the last few nights. I have with me 5 offical letters of recomendation from christian leaders but it counts for nothing here. They want to see a pilgrim's passport with stamps from the visited churches in it so I've actually been rejected from a few places for not being a proper pilgrim. No, I'm not here for the same reason everyone else is but I still need a bed. Thankfully, each rejection has been followed by the person calling me back & at last offering me a bed. I wanted to make a stand & not aquire a passport but I remembered a certain teaching about chritianity not being about self-assertion, so today I found a priest, Fr Carlos, who, after I'd explained my predicament, was very happy to issue me a pilgrims passport & send me on my way with his blessing. The place I stayed in last night has had 900 people pass through it in the last 2weeks so I am meeting many, many people on the road. I spent the first few days taking the quiet country roads, avoiding the crowds, but today I mustered up the courage to actually walk on the pilgrim route with other people in front & behind & I quite enjoyed it. It's probably a good one for my doctor of psychology sister, but after walking alone for so long, the stream of people on the camino was actually a bit threatening. I've met some great people in the last few days though so I'm warming to the idea of having others around me while I walk & pray & I spent some time walking with a Korean man this morning followed by two young gents from Laramie, Wyoming (I passed through Laramie 7months ago!). Last night I sat at a table with an Episcopal from Austin, Texas, & a Free Evangelical from Norway & we discussed life, walking & eventually unity. The Norwegian fellow asked what the theological differences between christians really were & so piece by piece we each started listing & discussing areas of difference & thankfully all with an air of lightness. The Norwegian fellow made an insightful comment at the end though, "Wow, we actually have a lot more in common than not." That was a good place for us to wrap up & head for dinner. I went to mass a few days ago & just as the celebration started I stood up (as is normal) & in doing so slid my feet forward under the pew but cracked my left foot into one of the pew's stands. The corner of the stand under the pew connected right on the wound on my right toe (I was back in flip-flops) & as everyone else sang the opening hymn I was left once again convulsing in agony as every vein in my body protruded further & further out. From behind it must have looked like I was having a seizure. The pain was intense & when I eventually looked down I saw a small pool of blood forming on the church floor. I can tell you, I didn't move much for the next 30mins & communion was a slow & taxing affair as the blood trickled under my toe & began to stick my foot to the flip-flops. Here's the deal though. The last 2days have been the first since my toe gave way in Italy where it has not hurt during the days walking at all. It's actually healing over. I've averaged over 40km a day this past week but the toe has actually began to heal over even though I've split it wide open twice. No more pain, no infection... less & less blood at the end of the day. All in God's good time. Now this is a 'graduation' (end of the journey) gift indeed! Onwards from here to Burgos & hopefully in 23days time I'll be wrapping this journey up on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. Sorry for the long blog but it was 2weeks worth :-) God bless & please keep praying for the unity of the body of Christ. Sam.
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Revelation 21:4

No internet, Where's sam and here is Christopher

2008-06-11T04:36:00.000-07:00

hello but not from Sam. It's Christopher his Lil bro here (back in Tasmania) and I've taken over. No not really, Sam gave me a very quick call and asked if i could just place this blog up to let every one know that he is OK. There just happens to be no Internet in the area he is in at the moment, or for the next week. Sam has crossed the Pyrenees and is now in Spain. He is now two days ahead of schedule due to very poor weather up in the Pyrenees, so as usual decided to walk two days in one. He said lots of cows with bells, and the highest mountain he climbed was 1800 meters. I didn't receive much more information than that due to Sam ringing from an expensive pay phone. Sam will be back soon. But for now, good bye from Christopher the more handsome and younger clear boy.

Misty Hills, Helpful Hands & Infection

2008-05-31T05:48:00.000-07:00

Hello from Toulouse in southern France! I had to think about that for a moment, "Where am I?" I'm actually not feeling too well right now. I have a mild dose of "I just walked 240km in 6days without a sufficient break" coupled with problematic feet. Basically I'm really tired & sat here looking at the computer for a very long time trying to muster up the energy to think back over what happened this week. I walked. I prayed. And yes, other things happened as well. My right foot is hurting more & more & I'm beginning to wonder if it isn't a structural problem (bone). I've conducted a few little tests to sort out why each step with the right foot is coupled with a massive fold line down the middle of my forehead & I'm leaning more towards bone damage than anything else. My left foot, on the other hand, is the one that's been bleeding & had problems with the nail & in the last 2days an infection has set in. It isn't good. I'm working on it as fast as I can & following doctor's orders however it appears at this stage to be an up-hill battle. I may need to start looking for a hospital very soon. Not yet though. Not yet. Other than walking on egg shells this week the journey from Montpellier to Toulouse was one of the most satisfying stretches of road I've passed along for a long time. I left the Mediterranean coastline at Beziers & headed up through the foerst-clad foothills of the Pyrenes. I was caught out by one thumping thunder storm that had me ducking for cover under a hawthorn bush for 30mins but thankfully I was eventually able to continue. The storm had passed but by lunch time the rain had set in solidly. I was saturated. It was, even so, beautiful. The wind was whipping mist up along the hillsides & seasonal waterfalls were bursting out over cliff faces along the valley walls as I headed higher & higher. I stopped in a small Catholic Church to extend to the parish the invitation to pray for unity but the priest was a little catious & dismissed the invitation. As I was leaving he asked if I needed anything so I promptly asked if it would be possible to dry my socks (my bag had been soaked & the spare pair were also wet). He obliged & showed me to a room with a small fan-forced heater. He left the room for a moment as I whipped my socks off & draped them in front of the heater but when he returned he happened to glance down & notice my wet, bleeding feet. He was shocked, "You actually walked all the way?" And so, for a second time, I had the opportunity to explain what I was doing & why, but this time, he recieved it with great interest & encouragement. Good old bleeding feet came in handy after all. For the next 30mins while my socks dried he ran to every room in the house fetching me food, medical supplies, a towel & 2pairs of thick walking socks. They were too small for me but more importantly my socks in front of the heater were drying quickly. By the time I eventually headed on my way again he had recieved the invitation to invite the town's people to pray for unity, though he felt he was loosing the battle in that town. It is sad indeed to see how foreign prayer has become to many. I have been pleasantly suprised though at how generous many of the French have been to me in giving their time. On a number of occasions this week I've asked for directions in a town & had the person I've asked actually walk me there. Last week it was elderly Rohan who showed me the way, but this week it was a mother, a young boy, a young couple & teenage girl (pictured). Every little bit of help makes a difference to my day so it has in essence been a more pleasant week than usual! I've also been thankful for some great off-road walking this week. On the day from St Pons to Mazere the old railway line had been graveled over for pedestrians & so I had a seamless, contour following trek through forest & tunnels to each of the village 'stops' along the way. It was a silent retreat from the constant roar of traffic. With summer fast approaching the fruit trees are coming to life with a boom & fairly regular haave an abbundant supply of mulberries & 3 varieties of cherries to choose from along the road's edge. Do I have a favourite yet? Nope, but I'll keep taste-testing them until I've come to a decision. It could take a while. I thought I might lose my tent on the first night of the week as a ferocious wind storm blew in off northern Africa & blasted the French coastline but it's now calm, cool & overcast. I've caught up the 3days I was lagging but the medical problems could put a dent in that sooner rather than later. I dropped an item of clothing on my foot last night & it nearly brought me to tears. If that item of clothing was a knight's chest plate then it would be considered normal to be crippled with pain, but it wasn't. It was my cotton undies. The toe is in bad shape. I hope I'll be writing to you from Lourdes next week, but only God knows that. Perhaps I'll be in Belgium seeking a toe surgeon instead. Please pray for me & as always, for the broken body of Christ, the Church. God bless & peace be with you. Sam.
"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it" Psalm 24:1

Timing, Snakes & 'Cosmic Energy'

2008-05-24T10:49:00.000-07:00

Hello from Montpellier in the central south of France! Another week of walking & praying has come & gone & I'm feeling every kilometre of it right now on this Saturday evening. I began from Brignoles 3days behind schedule but will enter into tomorrow only 1day behind. The price for that catch up was 157km in 3days across the hot & muggy, snake infested flood-plains of the River Rhine. My foot bled, my water ran out & I went without a shower twice. I encountered more snakes this week than South & Central America combined, & that's saying something. I was jumping every few hours as they flew off from under my next step & everytime my heart, quiet literally, skipped a beat. One particular snake, just outside Arles, stayed where he was long enough for me to take its photo but it soon darted back into the swamp as well. The scenery was superb apart from the snakes. Rice paddies, fully grown barley crops, hay cutting in progress & flourishing vineyards made a patchwork amidst the natural swamps & rivers. On my first day out of Brignoles I firstly had to dispatch an aggresive charging Rottweiler with a clip under its chin from my walking pole (worked a treat) before arriving in a small town to find no offer of accomodation or hotels/campsites. I'd been toying with the idea of catching up some lost time during the week so the oppurtunity to walk on wasn't with too much angst. That being said, I began to wonder what was going on after passing a series of hotels with no vacancies. After 2 campsites & 7 hotels (and 58km) I was told that a university congress was being held & the entire city of Aix-en-Provence & surrounding districts were booked out. Even the manger was occupied. A friendly receptionist at the final hotel pointed me towards the dimly lit river-side city park & at 11pm I pitched my tent (at no cost) alongside a hedge & tried my best to sleep. A homeless man, with his own sleeping gear, joined me in the park an hour later though there was about 50m between us. There was no one else to be seen. Well, it was so dark it would have been difficult to see anyone else in any case. I could hear drunken cheers coming from a group further up into the park but they didn't make an appearance thankfully. I admit, I didn't feel safe & woke nearly every hour but morning finally came & I packed up & was ready to move on. I walked past the homeless fellow & said good morning. He lifted up a bottle of wine to me & asked in perfect english if I drank. I said no & extended some of my breakfast to him & asked (again in perfect english) "Do you eat?" He smiled a broken tooth smile & said yes as he accepted the food. I should have asked him if he prayed as well, but I didn't & missed the oppurtunity. I often miss oppurtunities like that. I really should have stayed & at least chatted for a while. Should'a, would'a, could'a, didn't. In the next town after another long day of walking & praying the priest slipped me €30 for a hotel but everything had closed down! I asked many locals but everytime they either said there wasn't anything or pointed towards a hotel that closed down years ago. As all moments of dicision warrant, I grabbed a souvlaki & pondered my options. I decided that I wouldn't take the train to a neighbouring town & return in the morning but would just walk on until I found something. I struck up a conversation with my souvlaki maker before a young kid piped up in the background in broken english, "I know hotel." Meet Zaheer. A 10yr old of Iraqi heritage who'd been listening in to our conversation. I quickly bundled my pack up & Zaheer led me off across the railway tracks, chatting as we went. And would you believe it, for a brief moment, their we were, a christian missionary & a young muslim, talking about our faiths. He was a humble little kid. The hotel he led me to was indeed open & for €31 a bed was mine. Apart from the girl behind the bar I was the only non-French & non-muslim person there. I had a great time. Upon hearing of what I was trying to do (or doing) a fellow named Mohammed shouted me my drinks. He was openly disappointed though (with humour) that I chose a tall glass of Coke as my freebie. He paid for it none-the-less. Another man though, took one of the little prayer cards I carry with the internet address on it, so hello to everyone in Miramas if you're reading this! The following day was day 3 of the 157km & with the oppurtunity to take back a lost day within sight I pushed harder than I would normally like, to arrive in St Gilles right on sunset at 9pm. Now, get this for a series of 'perfect timing'; As I entered St Gilles I couldn't see any churches so I asked on elderly man sitting by the road for directions. He tried to explain but in the end offered to walk me. He was so incredibly slow that for a moment I felt like telling him I was in a hurry & thanks for bringing me this far but I'll walk on alone, but I then recalled that God's timing is perfect & everythig happens for a reason. The poor old bloke, whose name is Rohan, began to breathe heavily with a persistant wheeze as we negotiated some steep alley-ways. He had to stop a few times to catch his breath but with a genuine smile that read something like, "It wasn't always this tough" we continued to eventually arrive at the Basilica of St Gilles. After a solid hand shake he waved me off & I headed down the last narrow alley-way to an empty church square. At that moment a gentleman walked out of his house & threw something into his car. He looked up at me & asked if I needed accomodation. Jean-Claude then showed me around the corner & up a flight of stairs to an old stone building where he rang the door bell. After a small wait another man, Regis, was greeting me into his home & Jean-Claude was waving goodbye. Regis' home was decked out for passing pilgrims & he even cooked too much pasta for his dinner so there was a huge bowl of spaghetti sitting on the table waiting for me. Regis showed me my bed & then said goodnight, "I'm leaving at 5:30am so I won't see you in the morning. Just make sure you pull the door closed behind you when you leave." And he was gone. It was all very surreal. Perfect timing indeed. From there the journey has been relatively uneventful other than a fantastic bag full of food from the Evangelical Baptist Church in Lunel plus, of course, a few more snake dodges. I've even dodged dead snakes as well - it's difficult to tell the difference sometimes! Oh, that reminds me, I saw a snake road kill happen right in front of me. The snake decided to cross in front of me a car mowed it down followed by a huge semi-trailer. I actually felt sorry for it. I was also keeping a close eye on it in case it was flicked up by the impact. I was on edge! What's worse than a snake in the grass at your feet? A snake flying towards your head! It didn't move much though. The semi flicked it up a foot or so but not at me. I still don't like snakes but I did feel sorry for it. Not a good way to go. Today while walking into Montpellier I somehow landed in a roadside conversation with two... hippies. I don't know if that's the correct word to describe their way of life but it was one alternative conversation indeed. A middle aged man & a young woman with beautifully coloured clothes, no shoes & a plethora of dangling ornaments. He was all for unity but we weren't really on the same, shall we say, wavelength. When I shared about praying for christian unity he agreed that we needed to pray to the sky for the cosmic energies of all religions to unite as one so we could all come together. I'm still contemplating what that actually means. I was half laughing at our conversation but I was also looking for an oppurtunity to make a stand against what was a mish-mosh of 'the good of all religions' with very little understanding of what each religion was. As he spoke further about his favourite religion, a tribal belief system of South America, I began praying for an oppurtunity to say something that wouldn't offend him but still be able to introduce Christ into the conversation. Finally I remembered, "Share, don't preach" from my time with Youth Mission Team Australia & then I noticed that one of his many 'dangly things' was a Franciscan cross (the tau) exactly the same as the one I wear. He knew of St Francis as a man who talked to the animals & the plants & so he carried the tau with him. I pointed out that Francis wasn't exactly Dr Doolittle (he did scold a wolf, which obeyed him, & had a particular love & appreciation for God's creation) but he was most passionate about the Church & following the Lord. I then shared for a quick moment about how it was Francis' way of following Christ that was most attractive for me. I shared a little more about my own journey but the end result was... water of a duck's back. I don't think I had much of an impact. As I was continuing on the young woman presented me with a bouquette of coulrful flowers to carry with me. I wasn't really keen to cary the bouquette through Montpellier but with 2 walking poles, one in each hand, I was able to decline politely, "Sorry, I can't carry them." That didn't phase her one bit. She simply saddled up alongdside me & jammed the flower stems in between my backpack & neck such that the flowers were poking up over the back of my head like a floral halo. I could see my refelction in a warehouse window. I looked like a peacock with a backpack. I offered for them to be placed alternativly on the side of my backpack where they'd be better protected & so that was where they stayed until I arrived here this afternoon & dropped them in a church I stopped at. At the entrance to the church there was a loud gathering of university students playing theatre sports but it really hit me that the church itself was empty. I walked down the aisle & stood in the middle of the church, surrounded by the echoes of the festive gathering outside. It was then that a cat rubbed up against my leg before trotting down to the front row of seats. It jumped up & reached out with its front paws to the front rail. It just 'stood' there facing the altar. Now St Francis would have been moved by that! So I'm now in Montpellier & I'm re-mapping the forth-coming week to try & walk into Toulouse back on schedule. It looks possible at this point so I'll head southwest towards Beziers & then leave the coastline, following the Pyrenees Mountains westwards. I'll hopefully see you next week from Toulouse. God bless, Sam.
"Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect..." 1Peter 3:15
ps: And thanks for the comment Micah! The gentleman's comment was a reflection of him alone. Certainly not episcopals & definately not Texans :-)

Movies, Mountains & Monks

2008-05-19T05:41:00.000-07:00

Hello from La Castille, 50km south of where I should've been passing by three days earlier. So, I'm behind schedule & of course but it has been a brilliant week. I began by walking from Nice into Cannes on the eve of the Canne Film Festival & the city was a buzz with internationals everywhere. I found a campsite on the far side of town & very soon was meeting Koreans, English, Dutch & even some Australians! I met 2 young English directors, one presenting his short film, the other securing funds for his first feature film (look out for Chris McManaus in 2010) as well as 2 young men from South Korea who were in town to actually watch the films. The 2 Korean guys invited me to eat with them that night. The meal was fantastic but it's the conversation I'll remember. As soon as I'd shared about what I was doing one of them started talking about North & South Korea & the need to be united with those suffering across the border. He reflected "They are our family. Some argue that we should cut all aid to force the government to change, but the people need help now. There is a lot of suffering on both sides because we cannot unite fully." You could raise a point that the unity he was talking about is not the unity I'm walking & praying for, but it is, well, a fair smack of it anyway; To be united in Truth & in Love. Some of us start with love & work towards truth, others begin with truth & are compelled towards love. It was a timely dinner & nourishing in many ways. I also met an Episcopal preacher at the campsite but his comments left me a little shocked. He was all for christian unity but was even more intent on using humour to highlight his freedom as opposed to my 'guilt' as a Catholic (ie: He is saved & I, as a Catholic am apparently lamenting on my sin). His way of highlighting this can't be written here on this blog & I have no intentions of repeating his words verbatim. Basically though, after a short conversation I said, "Oh, by the way, I'm Sam." He responded by laughing & saying that he'll call me 'something that I can't write here' because he's episcopal & free to do what he wants. My dad sometimes uses colourful language bellowing at disobedient sheepdogs that have just split a flock of sheep in half but even they aren't degraded as much as this guy's alternative name for me. I left him alone. Our paths didn't cross again but I met many others & I appreciated them referring to me as Sam. He got his point across anyway, he's free to what he likes apparently. And I am... Sam. Walk on. From Cannes I headed across the mountains to Le Muy & for the first time on this entire trip felt a longing for home. I didn't feel that longing while at knife point, or gun point or while being beaten up by 2 drunk Russian men, but sitting on the side of the road on a near-deserted mountain side while I ate my lunch I longed for familiarity. I pushed on, praying as I did & many hours later arrived at Le Muy. It was nearly 30degC that day & with nearly 50km covered by foot I was wrecked. There were a couple of campsites on the edge of town but a few weeks ago I'd felt the Lord say, "If you want to organise your own accommodation, you'll sleep well, but if you finish each day in its entirety, I can do better for you." So with that ringing clearly I slothed on past the campsites to the centre of town & as I approached the central church a woman crossed the road holding walking poles (as I use). She spoke in French so I quickly interrupted with an apology for not understanding & she said, "Great! You speak English! I'm actually from England but live here." Margaret & her now deceased husband had lived in Le Muy for 30 years & it was now well & truly home for her. Incredibly, Margaret had been out walking with her walking club that morning up in the same mountains I'd traversed & they'd spotted me walking along the side of the road as they drove home. She couldn't believe I'd walked all that way & promptly offered me her spare apartment in the town centre. It was perfect. We ate dinner together in her apartment & despite being an atheist, she knew the bible very well & so we had quite an in-depth discussion. Margaret is a retired university English lecturer & so was more than apt in constructing well thought out questions around unity & its place on the world stage as an important issue. The evening was a pleasure & my little apartment for the night was so much more spacious than my one-man tent. The next day a similar course of events took place. This time though I was walking through the pouring rain & was absolutely saturated. I had a tiny area on my shirt around my stomach that had managed to stay dry but a passing truck found a puddle & quickly took care of that. Thanks buddy. Again as I walked into town I passed a few camp sites & some really cheap hotels but I thought I'd best push on to the fist church. I found a Catholic Church in the town centre & rang the door bell. As I stood there in the pouring rain I pondered the awkwardness of having to possibly put my tent up that evening & how I could possibly dry my clothes. Thankfully a 27 year old Argentinian missionary priest called Santiago opened the door & ushered me inside without hesitation. A room, a shower, a washing machine & a lot of Spanish! Fr Jose from Chile also lived there so the Spanglish was in full flight. Earlier that day I'd met a Polish missionary priest, Fr Andrew, & we had resorted to a combination of Polish/English in our conversation so my French has been a little slow to get off the ground. The following day was a cracker. I woke at 8am & didn't get back to bed until 9:30am the following day. Never ask a monk for accommodation... I'd said farewell to the South American missionaries in Le Luc & prayed my way to Brignoles where I knocked on the door of a French order of monks. The priest at the door called for another priest who bounced down the stairs & began speaking in english. Fr Tarcisius gave me 2 options; I could sleep, or, I could join him & a small group as they traversed the mountains southwards all night long to attend a special concecration mass for the diocese. I was actually kind of hoping for a good night's sleep after a day of walking, but remembering Fr Fox from Casper, Wyoming, who fed me & found me somewhere to sleep while his dinner grew cold & his team played off in the final of the world series baseball final (He simply believed that he was only ever asked something at an inoppurtune moment by God & so dropped his plans for me) I swallowed my desire to be a normal human being & sleep & agreed to walk with them. I asked for a toilet first & I was shown the way via a small room with 'Agape' written on the wall. Agape is a Greek word meaning sacrificial love so it meant a great deal at that moment to have that word in front of me reminding why I was there. I did thankfully have enough time to eat & then get a 90min power nap in before the 9 of us headed off into the night. My big toe was bleeding badly (I took a photo of it but it's a tad too graffic to upload onto the blog. You can email me directly if you want to see it) so the night walk along a rocky mountain trail was pushing me to the limits. There was just enough light to see without torches so we trekked through the enitre night pretty much unaided. At around 12:30am it began to rain & it didn't really stop until we eventually reached the final pass down into the town we were walking to some 5hours later. We arrived at the seminary where the mass was to be held at 7:30am & after breakfast & a few formalities I was thankfully ushered off to a quiet room where I roled out my camping mattres & finally fell asleep. For 3hours. What happened next was a gift from God. And strangly, I have no photos or video footage of my 2days at the Frejus/Toulon Seminary. Due to water damage my camera stopped working as I entered the place & it remained dead until I finally left & returned to Brignoles. Oh, by the way, I'm no longer in La Castille where I began writing this blog entry. My lift turned up to bring me back here to begin walking again tomorrow. So... hello from Brignoles! Welcome to my life. So, yes, the camera finally started working again as I arrived here in Brignoles so my time down south was just for me. It was inspiring. In particular, I met a fellow called Michael of Jesus. He's a monk. A 6ft 5in, basketball playing Chicago come Texas monk studying in the south of France. Mum, can Michael come 'round for lunch please? The guy inspired me so much by his life. His passion for Christ & the church jerked me out of the "I want to be at home" mind-set so hard that I nearly suffered whip-lash. We spent a huge amount of time together & rarely shut up. Some of the time we were speaking to each other & some of the time we were praying with each other. Other than 30mins at the end of the day where we were in silent prayer we basically exercised our jaws. The mass itself was attened by a few thousand people & was a suprisingly engrosing & emotional mass for one that stretched over 3hrs! I also met Fr's Jose, Santiago & Andrew once again, which was a blast. Michael introduced me to the Bishop & we had a very animated chat for a few minutes. He asked me if I was staying at the seminary that night. I said that I wasn't sure. The bishop smiled & threw his pointed finger at me, "Yes, in fact you should stay 2 nights!" I ended up staying for just the one night but the 2days there was the perfect God-given antidote to lethargy. Michael also arranged for a young doctor to come & tend to my feet (the other one is problematic as well). He patched up the bleeding toe & gave me what I needed in order to have one in future years & he then tended to the corn under my right foot. The first thing he noted on closer inspection was that it wasn't a corn & was actually nothing he'd seen before. He started hacking at it with a scalpel, which made my eyes open up as I wasn't seeing anesthetic anywhere. There was a little pain but it wasn't too bad considering he had to patch up blood once he'd finished. He handed the scalpel over to me with instructions to do everyday what he did but without the bleeding part. Great. I'm now back in Brignoles with the Community of St John & they've offered me a small room to sleep in tonight. It's small & next to a toilet. And on the wall is 5 letter Greek word... God bless & peace be with you! Sam
"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear..." 1 John 4:18

Sun, Sea & Self-Service Surgery

2008-05-12T12:01:00.000-07:00

Hello from Nice in south eastern France! I was in Italy yesterday, Monaco this afternoon & France this evening. That's a lot of prayer territory! And a lot of walking. I was joined from Genova to Nice by Irish Ann, a mother of two working boys & a lover of pilgrimages (walking + prayer). We were an odd couple treking around the Genova Gulf coastline together. Ann is half my height & I'm half her age but neither of us shied away from telling a few stories early on. Once the first day was out of the way though her Irish story telling skills kicked into gear & I was but a listener! The distances scheduled for this week were at times a lot more than Ann was prepared for & with some foot problems she was forced to only walk half days here & there but we always managed to find each other at the other end & progress further on along the coastline. I had a very blessed & uplifting week meeting priest after priest who opened the door with a smile & accepted me & the mission with open arms. After a difficult week last week it was the perfect remedy to have a series of priests ask me if they could pray with me before I continued on. One priest even handed me a tiny brick, which he signed the back of & dated. As he handed it to me he simply gestured that we each had to play our part in building the house of God; to build unity. A few towns further on I met a young priest who straight away jumped on the internet site to check out what's been happening & he immediately started laughing - Fr Stefano, pictured in last weeks entries, is one of his close friends. It was a great conversation starter. However, the highlight was, time after time, having priests ask me if they could pray for me before I continued. A young Carmalite priest shared with me that this part of the world is a real mission field with a low level of faith, "98% of the population say they are Catholic, the problem is that no one is christian." In all honesty though, I was left with a sense of hope from the prayerfullness of the chritians I did meet. As the week drew towards a close I was lamanting on having only found Catholic Churches for the entire week & wondering if I'd missed people along the way. That was on the road into San Remo, late at night, as Ann & I were still looking for somewhere to stay. It was then that we passed a Lutheran Church on the way in & then first thing the next day found 6 evangelicals meeting in an old church followed by a Russian Orthodox Church with 3 parishoners standing at the front door. One of the men only spoke Russian so I asked him in Russian, "Can I have fish please. Thankyou." That was all I remembered from Russia but it once again broke the ice & we had a fun time trying to communicate. His friend spoke fluent english though so he stepped in when we'd talked ourselves into a brick wall. The call to pray for complete unity was well recieved. It has been a culturally bizzare week for me. I say this with half a smile; I really didn't get into the Genova Coast lifestyle. I just didn't get it. I grew up on an island (Flinders Island) & so the environment was very familiar & welcoming. It was just that the hundreds of lifeless bronzed bodies beached along the shoreline was not what I'm used to seeing. When we went to the beach we'd swim, but no one here was swimming! They were ALL tanning. I said to Ann that I didn't understand why no one was swimming, after all it was nearly 30degC. Ann proposed that it may be polluted. Not too much further down the road we passed a fellow who was standing at the water's edge urinating into the sea. Yep, it's polluted :-) I tried to buy a sunscreen at a shop but for the shelves of sun products all I could find was tanning lotions. In the end I had to ask for help & after a few minutes of searching I was on my way with my 'SPF50 Babies Milk Lotion'. No pride lost there. I like it. It's not greasy. The beaches were a mass of bronzed bodies (clothing was very optional) & the car parks were filled with expensive automobiles reflecting the million dollar yachts anchored beyond the section of water reserved for swimming. Or urinating. I just didn't get it. I have no idea why, but as I walked along 'opulence coast' the strangest thought poped into my head. I once shot my sister, Rachael, between the eyes with a suction dart gun (still sorry about that Rach) & as I walked I thought, "I bet these guys wouldn't have done that". Basic point being, I felt out of place (no idea why that memory of all the possible memories was the one to come to mind). I'd like to go for a swim some time before leaving the coastline however my very well tanned hands & face coupled with my Omo-white chest could cause people to think that a Panda has escaped from the local zoo. I'd better not cause a scene. Last night I decided to operate on my left big toe before it succumb to the same fate as it did in Panama & the USA. The now re-grown toenail had begun to bury deep again & was within a whisker of splitting to toe open & another bundle of painful walking. With a set of small scissors, some tweezers & a nail file I was able to cut away the ingrown nail & clean up a nasty looking wound over the course of an hour. It wasn't quiet as painful as I thought it would be but that was the point in taking an hour to do what a doctor would do in 5mins with anesthetic. It wept a little over the course of todays walk but not too seriously & I think it was made to look worse by the antibitoic gel I put on it. Not sure. I'll be keeping a close eye on it though. Ann & I walked along the grand prix track in Monaco today on our way to Nice. Monaco was over flowing with mansions, unbelievable sports cars & the biggest luxury water craft I have ever seen in my life. And at one point I counted 4 helicopters in the sky at one time. The whole day left me with an overwhelming sense of sadness. I was praying as I walked along a high, winding cliff road past a mansion clad nudest beach & I kept thinking, "Why? How can so many live like this when so many fight to stay alive?" Some of you may remember Adolfo from Panama who shared his tin shed with me & a bread role when I had nowhere to stay & nothing to eat. He was leaving his wife & little girl the next day for a few months to try & find work before returning with whatever money he could muster up. I kept thinking of him as I walked & prayed today & now I'm getting up to date with the tragedy in Myanmar this past week so it's all hitting home pretty hard. Unity is choice & to not choose it in it's fullness is to not choose love in all its fullness. God is love. I'm looking forward to making it back home but I'm even more eager to hit the missionfileds again. Actually, I booked my flights home today. I'll catch a train from Spain to Paris & fly out on Friday the 11th July & arrive back on home soil in Sydney at 8:15am, Sunday the 13th. It's near & yet with a my left toe, right foot & right shoulder all in some sort of trouble the last few thousand kilometres looks very real indeed. I'd better get bqck to it then. God bless & please pray on!! Sam.
"We continually remember before our God & Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, & your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thesolonians 1:3

Huge Days, Taunts & Stuff

2008-05-05T14:02:00.000-07:00

Hello from Genova in north western Italy. The beginning of this week feels like it was a month ago. Argh! I hurt. I've walked 108km in last 2days alone & I have no idea how many km's for the whole week. It was long though. Last Sunday will go down as was one of the most difficult walking days of the entire journey with numerous factors making it a physically & mentally tough challenge. From Orbetello to Grosseto I had to tackle insane holiday traffic on a road with only 30cm between the white line & the crash barrier & that 30cm was overgrown with knee high grass. It was a hot day & the 44km day felt like a 70. My arms were exhausted from constantly having to drag the poles through the long grass & my legs were burning. It didn't help when some drivers wanted to make of point of their disapproval of me walking beside the road by driving as close as they could & squeezing me up into the chest-high crash barrier. The whoosh of rear-vision mirrors & dopler-effected slurs defines that day. My left hand clipped a barrier join half way through the day & it placed a nice slice across the finger. Blood started flowing but with nowhere to stop & grab a band-aid form my bag it was left to 'run its course'. I'd trudged past a few road-kill snakes & found myself thinking about the probability of stepping on a live one in the long grass on a 44km hot day. It was less than 5seconds later that I was jamming the walking poles into the ground with full force & thrusting myself backwards away from a 1metre Biacco snake as it took flight in the other direction. Probability: 1. I was relieved to finish the day & I was offered a small room behind a church with nothing more than two bench seats, which I pulled togther & made into my bed for the night. I had been directed to that church by a young lady who had walked From France to Santiago de Compostela & said that she remembered how difficult it was when no one welcomed her, so she wanted to make a point of helping me find 'something'. I felt very welcomed. The next day was my 500th day on the road. I celebrated by looking at my itinerary halfway through the day & muttering, "Wow, 500 days... Thanks Lord." And that was it. I'll celebrate at day 571. I was lost a few times that day as my map didn't line up with the actual roads & the road signs pointed to towns that weren't on my map at all. I Began the week a day behind schedule & was struggling to hold onto that 1day gap until mid way through the week when the roads opened up, the traffic eased off & the map & signs became helpful. I caught up the extra day by walking 25km on my rest day but it was a fairly relaxed walk & it still felt like a rest after the torturus beginning to the week. Having said that, I was also very close to throwing all my gear away as I left the city of Pisa on Friday. I was going to toss my backpack in the ditch & somehow walk the rest of the way to Spain with nothing. I'd had an absolute gut-full of the locals behaviour that it was the only non-violent protest I could think to make. Within a 12hour space I was followed & heckled by 20youths who kept yelling out, "Hey! Hill-billy!" as they laughed & made jokes, I was turned away from a church were they told me they weren't interested to hear what I had to say (& I hadn't yet said anything), I was pointed at by a young woman who burst out laughing & pulled her boyfriends attention to me & I then had a young bloke toot his horn at me as I walked down a footpath & I looked over just in time to see him give me the 'bird' (middle finger). I've heard a song on the radio lately that has a chorus line of, "Stop & stare" & it was playing as I walked into a shop & everyone did exactly that. I actually found that one funny though, "What is this! Am I in some sort of Trueman Show Muscial!!" I know throwing my gear away might not sound particularly applicable to the situation, but it made sense at the time with a philosophy of if they weren't going to take the unity of the broken body of Christ seriously, I would. I didn't toss the bag though (my shoulders would have appreciated it!) but instead put it all to good use as I found a campsite & then met the very welcoming hospitality of 4 camping couples from Holand. Funnily enough, they didn't know each other. They'd all driven down from Holland, set up their campervans next to one another & then discovered they were all Dutch! We ate together & shared a lot of stories in a very relaxed posi a short distance from the beach. It was such a diverse 24hours. I've had a little more of a taste of the different world of driving over here. A firetruck rumbled past me at full speed with lights flashing & siren wailing before 3 more firetrucks came into view in the same manor. As they approached me the traffic pulled over to give them a clean path through but a fellow driving a semi-trailer decided it was a good oppurtunity to drive out off a side road onto the main road. Being a semi-trailer he had to swing out across the entire road & thus forced the three trailing fire trucks to both brake heavily & make a line for the gravel on the far side of the road. I was still a few hundred metres off but it didn't stop me yelling out, "What are you doing!? Un-be-lievable!" The semi tucked it's nose around just in time for the fire trucks to squeeze past & accelerate on towards the billowing plume of smoke now rising from the town I'd only just passed through. There's just something fundamentally wrong with that. Who pulls out in front of racing emergency vehicles? The other side of the new world of driving I've walked past was the Sunday motorbikes covering the same mountain I was traversing. I'm a bike rider myself but I was torn between, "Nice!" & "Are you serious!!" all day long. Nice bikes, very dangerous speeds & lines through corners. Twice I saw a rider take a dangerous line through a blind corner in order to get maximum speed out of it, only to be met by a bike coming in the other direction doing the same non-intelligent thing. It seriously had me flinching as they jaged onto new lines to avoid becoming intimitly connected. Another fellow had to change his line & speed so drastically as a family van rounded the corner that he locked up the rear wheel & fish-tailed it sideways before regaining control. He missed the van by a good 50cm, not bad when you're not in control. So which one of you is the real Valantino Rossi? Nice bikes though. And then there was the Porsche 911 Carrera that was actually over-taking the bikes. Thnakfully I could here him coming from a few kilometres away so I 'went bush' for each of his passes. I don't think I was on his 'obstacles to avoid list.' More & more though I was thinking not about which bike I'll buy next, but about what my priorities are in life. To a point, surrounded by so much gleam & chrome made me long for missionary work with the poor. Probably best not to look at the bikes too much & concentrate on a little more prayer. That day was 62km long & lead me to yesterday's walk into Genova. Here, after quite an exhaustive effort (it's a whole blog in itself) I have met with Ann from England, a vertran of pilgrimages after her return to the church a few years ago. Ann has waved goodbye to her husband & working sons for a week to join me on the road in prayer & conversation. I'll introduce her properly next week! I'm about to duck off to the post office to mail home some gear that I either no longer need or is weighing me down & then we'll hit the road. My gear is suffering a little. To use an engineering term, my backpack is stuffed. Some zips are completly stuffed, while others are almost stuffed. The straps are somewhat stuffed & so I'm removing as much stuff from it as possible so it doesn't progress to the totally stuffed phase. I did a fresh air swing with my walking poles this week & nearly landed flat on my face. I was confused for a split second as to what had happened until I looked back & saw that half the walking pole was laying on the edge of the road. It's stuffed too. The good ol' sticky tape has once again come to the rescue! So, with a bible in one hand, sticky tape in the other & less weight in my backpack it's on towards France! Pray, pray, pray. God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"Be joyful, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances" 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18b

Vatican, Stares & Memory Loss

2008-04-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

Orbotello wasn't supposed to be one of my stopping points, however, on this warm Saturday evening, hello from Orbotello on the Italian Mediteranean coastline. On Monday I was scheduled to visit the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity for nothing more than a quick hello before heading off towards France. What I had failed to take into account though was that the men & women I would be meeting with that morning don't simply work in a place that deals with the issues of unity, they live it. The unity of christians is their passion & their mission. Ergo, I was offered a very warm welcome & what I thought would be a 30min wave hello & goodbye turned into nearly a full day. I was greeted at the door by the secretary I had been in contact with prior to my arrival & was quicly introduced to Monsignor Bollen who is in charge of the Catholic/Anglican dialouge. After a considerable chat I was asked to sign copy of the International Week of Prayer for Christian Unity booklet & then introduced over time with the priests in charge of dialouge with the Greek Orthodox, Lutherans, Jews & the World Coucil of Churches, respectively. I then had the oppurtunity to meet with both Bishop Brian Farrell (secretary) & Walter Cardinal Kasper, who leads the 'team'. That meeting was very quick as the Cardinal had asked to say hello in between two meetings but we did quickly pose for a photo together. I blinked. Sorry. There were a number of points to come from all the meetings & conversation though. Firstly, that Christ's prayer (John 17) & St Paul's exhortations call for a 'visible' unity & that the lack of it is in direct conflict with our calling to live as christians. And secondly, what really struck me, was their incredible joy & love of what they did, or more to the point, of what God does are they are privileged to be a part of. The place was litterally bursting with smiles & gentle humour. I asked one of the priests what he did at the council but before he could answer, a Tanzanian priest in charge of dialouge with the WCC called out from down the hallway, "As little as possible!" There where a few laughs before he finally had the oppurtunity to answer the question, but the mood was the same the whole day. There were people bouncing around everywhere. They all enjoyed what they did & had such incredible admiration for all the denominations they each worked alongside. The young Dominican in charge of the Greek Orthodox dialouge spoke about the Greek Orthodox Church with greater affection than I've heard any Greek Orthodox speak about it! The Monsignor called me aside at one point & apologised because he had organised some interviews for me for that day & so I was then off across the street to Vatican Radio before dashing up to CNS (Catholic News Service), then across town to the Franciscan run Centre For Unity & then a rest over night before meeting with Zenit TV for an interview the next morning. The young Dominican priest, Fr Vladimir, invited me to stay in their spare appartment just outside the Vatican walls. Not long after arriving there, Fr Oliver (Catholic/Lutheran dialouge) showed up with a gift from Bishop Brian Farrell; a tour of the excavations of the tombs of the first christian matyrs underneath St Peter's Basilica. Now that's a gift! And so after sharing a meal with 4 Dominicans I was off to bed in readiness for the tour of the crypt & the final interview the next morning. As it would be though, there was confusion the next day at the Vatican gates & the guards directed me to the wrong place & to cut a complicated & frustrating 2hr story short, I didn't make it under St Peter's. I have to be honest, I was bitterly disappointed for about half an hour but eventually managed to refocus & set my mind on what really mattered as Zenit TV showed up for their interview. Eventually hitting the road again after lunch on Tuesday was a breath of fresh air. I felt a lot more comfortable just walking & praying. I've fallen one day behind schedule over the last 2days due a variety of factors but I'll try to catch that day later in the week. I've been taunted for the last few days by 2 old problems that have flaired up badly. I have been walking with a corn on the bottom of my right foot since Mexico & with severe muscle soarness in my right shoulder-blade since Poland. Niether has been too unbearable until this week & I really had to consentrate on not letting out grunts & groans while people were walking past me. My foot feels like it's on fire & my back feels like it has a knife shoved up between the shoulder-blade & ribs. I've had two shoulder reconstructions ('96 & '03) and so that shoulder is a lot tighter than normal & requires particular attention. Obviously more than I've been giving it! I'm pleased to report though that my split heal has healed. Next! Hmmm, you know, I actually thought that by the time I made it to this part of the world I'd be cruising. Oh the ignorence! My reception in many towns hasn't changed a great deal. I arrived in a particular seaside town earlier in the week but hadn't seen any signs showing the name of the place & so I went to ask a lady walking past me what the name of the town was. I only managed, "Excuse me" in Italian before she tucked her handbag under her arm & ran like blazes all the way up the street. Wow, am I that ugly?? While still contemplating the dashing women, a young man exited his front gate right beside me. He looked up at me, I smiled & said hello, he continued to stare for a while & then returned the greeting before heading back inside through a second gate. I walked on into the town & passed an elderly lady sitting outside a cafe. She was fixated on me. She did not break her stare for a second. It was very unnerving & I felt a tad uncomfortable so I simply nodded & said good afternoon to her but she didn't waver. No return of greeting, no break in the stare. Walk on. Unfortunatky it is pretty common in town after town & it's had me very needlessly contemplating what's wrong with my appearence. Perhaps it's my height (196cm), perhaps it's because I'm carrying a backpack & two walking poles. I don't know. Maybe I just look like Shrek :-) While being interviewed by Vatican Radio on Monday, the interviewer looked at my itineary & pointed out that I was passing by her mother's place where I could stay if I wanted to. I took up the offer & so last night stayed with 81 year old Josette in her country home. It was a stay with a difference. Josette lives by herself & fends for herself pretty well in spight of suffering from short-term memory loss. The thing is, I didn't know this(that information hadn't been passed on) so the first few minutes of our conversation was oh-so painful! Eventually I figured out what was going on & I was quiet happy to have the same conversation 4 times over. I had to stop myself from laughing at one point though. Josette was talking on & on about her cats before she stopped suddenly & asked of me, "Do you murder cats?" I laughed inside but kept a straight face as replied, "No, no not at all." "Good" she said, and the conversation went elsewhere. Do I murder cats? What did concern me though was that at one stage she began to talk about her daughter who works with the Vatican Radio & after I'd pointed out that I met her on Monday she began to laugh at how small the world is that I'd meet 'her' daughter in Rome. She couldn't believe that I'd run into her daughter, but it left me thinking, "Well, how does she think I ended up here?" What was concerning me was what was going to happen the next morning when I walked down the stairs into the kitchen? Would she remember me or think I was a robber? Firstly though we had to get through dinner but because there were 3 options available for dinner, the 3rd was too far away from the 1st & so we'd recycle through this endless cycle of options. Three options was quickly turning into 22options & counting. I eventually stopped the endless cycle of options by offering to cook for her & so sat her down at the table & set to work. It wasn't the best meal I've ever prepared but it did us fine & we eventually tapped into a topic on which her memory was not faulting - the war. She talked for 3hours straight without drawing breath & though she repeated some topics, it was always with a little extra information or from a slightly different perspective. It was a brilliant dinner conversation. This morning I waited anxiously for Josette to make an appearence, wondering if she'd recognise me. When she did walk out, there was a look of complete confusion on her face for a few seconds before she finally relaxed & commented, "So you're off then! Where to today?" Argh, thank the Lord, she remembers me. She sat me down & offered me the last few pieces of bread & some home made marmelade. As I finished the last piece of bread she walked over towards the table & announced, "Now! I have a couple of pieces of bread here. You can have it if you like." She flicked over the tea towel that had been covering the bread but of course it was now empty. "Now where the Dickens has that bread gone!" Oh dear, her we go again... It took a long time to say goodbye but it was a fabulous stay. Her memory has faded badly but her hospitality was as good as gold. Please continue to pray for the unity of christians & hopefully, I'll be leaning slightly to the north of Pisa next week as I touch base again. Until then, bye for now and God bless, Sam.
"Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings." Rom16:16

Deserted Tracks, a Split & Wild Rome

2008-04-20T06:56:00.000-07:00

After 12,500km on foot I'm finally in Rome! It was a spectacular walk from Siena to Rome along a vast network of quiet roads & bush tracks. There were times where I had to battle aginst heavy traffic on highways with no shoulder but for the most part it was a treat. The highway walking is a tad scarey here in Italy. It is one of the most dangerous countries I've walked in as far as traffic flow is concerned & it's actually pretty scarey in sections. I've regularly seen cars pottering down the road at about 40km/hr & others, on the same road, pushing well past about 150km/hr. Combined with the numerous blind corners here it is a recipe for disaster. I've also watched cars pull out in front of fast moving traffic causing a succession of screaming tyres & horns (3 in 1min at one intersection). What's really sad though is the huge number of death memorials along the side of the roads. I say it's dangerous with certain amount of somberness. Too many deaths. A scarey yet somewhat funny moment last week was when a middle-aged man drove up along the mountain pass I was negotiating & pulled over just ahead of me. As I walked past him he unashamably stared at me but the poor guy was so badly cross-eyed that he had to turn his head a good 90deg & swap to the alternate eye to literally 'keep an eye on me'. He then started his car up & drove off up along the twisty mountain pass. Now that is talent! It didn't fill me with a great sense of security though. In any case, as I said, most of this week has been along quiet stretches & so I've had a privileged week filled with rolling green hills, relaxed farmers, gentle farm dogs & horses eager for some attention &... no hotels. From Siena to Rome I was walking along an old pilgrim's route from France to Rome & so each of the little villages I stayed in had a house set aside for any pilgrim passing through. It was perfect. Other than still pushing the line that I'm here as a missionary, not a pilgrim, but the house would be great, thanks. Many rest houses didn't have hot water, two didn't have a bed (I slept on tiles one night) & I went for 3days without a shower. Don't worry, I did the old 'splash basin wash' with the freezing water. That had me jumping! The first few pilgrim homes I'd stayed in had crockery so as I entered the third village I bought myself some gnocci at the local supermarket to have for dinner. The cupboards were bare! I thought, "There's a reason for everything. Maybe God wants me to meet the locals." So, out I went, looking for a pot. The first guy I met was a geologist & he wasn't carrying a pot, however, he thought it was funny that I was wandering the streets looking for a pot with my gnocci in hand & so he walked with me to a nearby house & did the asking for me to the young man hanging out of the 2nd storey window. The young man was very accomodating & after extending the invitation to pray for unity I accepted the pot & boiled up my gnocci. I haven't shared a meal with anyone in over 3weeks now though so I'm beginning to miss that a bit. I did share half a muesli bar with a friendly horse, but the conversation was kind of one way. One of my favorite places so far on the walk through Europe is a village called Radicofani. It was perched up on top of a mountain with an 80km view out to the south. The people were very warm & welcoming & smiles weren't hard to come by. It was the sort of place where I would be quite happy to simply sit down & not really do much else. Some of the locals were doing just that & I understood why. I inflicted a new injury on myself on the walk up into Radicofani. Where my archilles tendon meets the foot, I have a few crease lines in the skin, which have been amplified by the thickening of skin due to, well, perhaps a lot of walking? Somehow, and I have no idea what caused this, one of those skin creases split all the way through such that I could see all the way through to whatever is under the skin at that part of the body. i don't think I was looking at the tendon itself but it certainly wasn't skin. It was like a little mouth that I could open & close by moving my foot up & down. It was a painful injury that forced me to limp badly for a couple of days but a mixture of creams, band-aids & cushioning has at least helped to heal it shut once more. And shut, I hope, it will stay. The walk into Rome was filled with some wild safari moments that I didn't expect. I accidently headed down the wrong backroad for 3km through some thick bush & rolling hills & within 30mins I saw 2wolves, twice, a herd of wild boar & a young couple romancing in their Volkswagon Beetle. Excuse me, moving on (I didn't ask them for directions though it would have been funny to). Once back on the right road I came within a whisker of standing on a viper, curled up in the grass. I was literally placing my foot on top of it as I caught sight of the circular pile of snake & managed to quickly move my momentum backwards with the aid of the walking poles. The viper stayed long enough for me to film it but then it was off in a flash. I should start a safari tour company; "Rome as you've never seen it before!" I arrived in Rome last night, walked through St Peter's Square & struck up a fun conversation with two Swiss Guards for about half an hour. I had a couple of possible contacts for accomodation here but I sort of missed my oppurtunities so I was left to wander the streets looking for something. Everything I found was either full or €80 a night, which I can't afford. I ended up in a church chatting with 3 very jovial priests & they were happy to do the searching for me. They found a place for me a few kilomtres away where I could stay for free so I headed off with directions across town as the sun was setting. Once I arrived I found they'd sent me to a homeless men's shleter. I thought that was funny but I wasn't laughing when I was rejected at the door. Now that's low. There was no room. I walked off into the Rome night along poorly lit, deserted streets thinking, "I just got rejected at a homeless shelter." I eventually wandered past a hotel that still had rooms available & for €40 a night it was mine. It took a while, but all worked out well in the end. I've been invited to drop in to the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Christian Unity first thing tomorrow morning & then after a quick look around & continued prayer I'll then be turning northwest for the final leg of the journey - to Spain. Please keep praying for the unity of Christians in truth & in love & if you have the time, I'll see you next week. God bless, Sam.
"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. 1Thes 5:16-18

Culture, a Wolf & Heresy

2008-04-12T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hello from Siena, Italy! I was walking along yesterday through some of the most spectacular vineyards & rolling hills I'm ever likely to see & thought, "I wonder where I am." I checked my map & "Oh, I'm in Tuscany. No wonder it's beautiful." So, hello from Tuscany! From Bologne to Prato to Florence to Siena has been one of the more relaxing stretches for a long while. There was actually some space on the side of a few roads & the ones for which there was nothing, well, there weren't any cars so it didn't really matter. There's something satisfying about walking down the middle of a winding road in the middle of Tuscany to the sound of birds whistling & nothing else. It has, however, rained for the past 2days & quite heavily at times. That put a dampner on the taking of photographs but not on the walking & praying. So other than birds I've also been joined by the sound of rain hitting my jacket's hood. A few days ago I ruined the peaceful mood by rubbing my eye with the hand I'd been using to pick flowers & grass seeds with as I walked along the edge of the road. Something I'd picked didn't like me & I had an intense hay-fever reaction causing the right eye nearly close over completly (check out the photo). It hurt! Another lesson learnt. This morning at around 6:30am I was joined on the road by an unexpected visitor - a wolf. It was probably 100m in front of me when we spotted each other & it quickly took flight through a neighbouring vineyard. I grabed a couple of seconds worth of footage before it disappeared but it was great to just see one (& runnning away at that). A few of the locals disputed the existence of wolves in the area but they soon changed their tone with wide eyes as they watched the few seconds of footage on the handycam. Apparently they do exist. Big critter it was too. The walking has been very satisfying but the inviting part of the mission has been a little strained. This is a high pilgrim part of the world & many churches are quick to presume that I'm a pilgrim looking for a handout. I haven't been received particularly well in a few places & they've been quick to palm me off. There is cultural habit in this region of finishing each others sentences. Unfortunately everyone seems to guess the end of my sentence incorrectly & it then takes a few minutes to get the message across that I'm not, for example, there to ask for money. At one church, while I was introducing myself to a lady hanging out the third storey window, she quickly disappeared somewhere around, "I'm walking around the world..." & returned with a few coins wrapped in a tissue & tossed it out the window to me. I tried to explain that this wasn't why I was there but she just smiled & shut the window. At another church I stood back & watched 3 people have a heated arguement over where I could stay. I had already stayed in that city & was actually on my out (it was about 9am) & was not looking for accomodation. I hadn't at any stage mentioned accomodation! I tried to enter into the arguement but they kept telling me to wait. Eventually I just gave them the farmer's whistle & they stopped & turned to me, "I-do-not-need-accomodation". All 3 looked very confused & one of them asked, "Well what do you want? Do you want food?" "No, I don't want food." It has been like this day after day & has stretched me massively. It's probably good stretching though. I like to be heard out but I'm just having to adapt to the cultural method of communication. We get to the point in the end. As a direct consequence of this, when someone asks if I'm a pilgrim, I now say, "No, I'm a missionary." Most of the pre-conceived ideas are associated with pilgrims but there are few about missionaries & it gives me more of an oppurtunity to get the invitation across. I'm often asked where I finish walking & previously, when asked this question, I reply, "Santiago de Compestela", but this has pilgrim conetations plastered all over it, so I now simply say that I'm finishing on the Atlantic Ocean in Spain & the onversation moves on smoothly. This region has also hit my pocket pretty badly. It is very expensive. I easily spend 4days worth of funds each day but will try to make up for it with my tent once the weather fines up. Perhaps some hospitality as well will help. I can only hope! I took my scheduled rest day 2days ago & once again rested in a homeless men's shelter. It was the Emmaus Community workshop where they provide work & bed for thsoe who need it. The centre was set up by a husband & wife & a priest 30years ago. All 3 are still there, workign hard, but now joined by the couples 8 children. Wow - eight. I learnt 3 names. This week I also met a priest who was full of energy & was very welcoming. Fr Luciano almost convinced me to take a short detour via Assisi on my way to Rome but the extra 3days just isn't doable. And in the end, it doesn't make any difference where I am, the invitation is the same & the prayer is the same. I'll hopefully get there another time & just sit on a hill with time to just 'be'. The struggle with the communication problems has forced me into prayer a lot but what has also been on my mind as I pray for unity in truth & in love is the truth side of unity. I've been very concerned about the love side of disunity but of late a few incidents in a row have set my mind rolling on truth. The primary question is how do we (Christians) accept one another in love without encouraging any heresies that may exist, but to iradicate them... in love? So, all week, I've been back & forth thinking about various accusations of heresy from pretty much every church to at least one other. I could write a book on my thoughts but at perhaps 'the right time' I read a line from St Leopold Mandic's diary that put it all into some perspective. I left the booklet with the Emmaus shelter, but the passage read something like this, "The most important factor in the reunification of Christians, isn't our prayers, nor is it unity dialouge, but God's grace." Amen to that! So, with an adaption of a St Francis' prayer in my heart, "Lord, save me from the desire to be heard" I'm heading further south tomorrow into the, as always, unknown. God bless & peace be with you & as my friend Dave Raba once wrote to me, "May we always be inspired by the unity of the Father, the Son & the Holy Spirit." Cheers, Sam.
"Take my yoke upon you & learn from me, for I am gentle & humble in heart, & you will find rest for your souls." Matt 11:29

Saints, Sinners & Stuff-ups

2008-04-06T10:56:00.000-07:00

From the city that invented spaghetti bolognese, Bologna, greetings! This week didn't look particularly difficult on paper but I was certainly stretched a few times none-the-less. It was around 190km from Vienna to Bologna, but I'd only traveled 10km when, while talking to a parish priest, I realised that the top pocket on my backpack was wide open & my wallet had gone. I was a little, say we say, frenzied, & the poor priest, who didn't speak a word of english had no idea what the problem was but wanted to help somehow. Eventually I managed to stop stripping everything out of my bag to explain what had happened & he offered a simple gesture of, "Is it in your pockets?" I said no, & brushed my hand past my pocket... "Oh yes, it is!" It's so stressful being this dumb sometimes. So, on I went praying my way to the city of Padua. A place had been oragnised for me to stay at in Padua (thanks Tony!) with a young couple in an ecumenical community. Enrique & Adele had very generously opened their home up without a moment's notice. I hadn't quite reached Padua by nightfall so they drove out & picked me up. The next day was a peaceful rest day & we spoke a great deal about many issues & opportunities within the movement towards Christian unity. After the rest day, Enrique dropped me back where he'd picked me up from & I completed the rest of the walk into Padua with the intention of then coninuing with that days walk to a town 35km further on. While passing through the city centre I stopped in at St Anthony's Basilica but wasn't particularly hopeful of meeting anyone there. Five million people pass through it's doors each year so I figured it would be like all large places & I wouldn't get anywhere. The basilica has Vatican Guards throughout & I managed to get talking with one who spoke english. Thankfully, he was very interested in what I was doing & so reached out & stopped the St Anthony's Basilica Franciscan Friars Provincial who just happened to be walking past. He was like all Franciscans I've ever met, humble & generous, & quickly invited me to join him for lunch & explain more of what I was doing. Out through the back of the basilica we went, through guarded doors, a courtyard & a few more sets of private doors until we arrived in a mess-hall filled with 60 very loud and jovial Franciscans! I've never seen so many priests in one place. In fact, 50 of them were priests & 10 were seminarians, but all were laughing & chatting as they shared their meal. The provincial asked me to take a seat as he called over one of the priests who spoke english & very soon I was telling my tale to a full table. To cut a long story short, they offered me a room for the night, I accepted, & then spent the rest of the day being inspired out my socks! Firstly I skipped down the road (not litterally) to the church of Saint Leopold Mandic, where I met more Franciscans, living total poverty, sharing the gospel & loving every minute of it. Leopold Mandic is a bit of a hero of mine. He spent the majority of his life praying & sacrificing for the unity of the church & in bringing the comforting words of God's forgiveness to all. From their I raced over to the 3rd largest basilica in the world (can't remember the name if it...) & found the tomb of St Luke the Evangelist (author of the Gospel of Luke & Acts) & viewed one of his paintings (it was kind of falling apart). Simply standing there looking at his tomb inspired me with a great sense of wonder at those who have gone before us & laid their lives down for the Lord. Then I raced back over to St Anthony's Basilica where I learned more about how this incredible man was used by God to convert & build-up thousands of people. I then had the opportunity to head to confession with an english speaking priest so I grabbed it. For those not familiar with 'confession', it is simply the act of coming to the church (the priest being it's representative), confessing your sins & the priest sharing with you God's forgiveness. It's as simple as that, but it still gets me to hear the words of forgiveness rather than just 'know' them. A bit like hearing someone say, "I love you" as opposed to just knowing that they do but never hearing it. So, I drifted off to sleep in my Franciscan cell that night as light as a feather & inspired well beyond the end of this walk in July. Fr Allesandro saw me off the following morning & I was on my again, praying for unity, conversion, faith, etc towards Rovigo. It was a long 45km & I was especially sore for some reason. I visited a few churches but the reception was cold on each account. I'd introduce myself & the mission & extend the invitation to pray for unity & they'd look at me & ask, "What do you want? Nothing? Good. Have a good walk. Goodnight." It didn't bother me too much but what really hit home was when I discovered that their was a conference on in town & every hotel was booked-up! I had nowhere to sleep & it was already night. To make matters worse, as I exited the last hotel, a tad despondent, I realised that all the restaurants & cafe's were closing in a flurry of clanking security shutters. I hadn't eaten dinner yet! I walked to the edge of town & into a service station. They were shutting too & I couldn't even get a drink. "Ok, lord, where are we going? What's the deal here?" There were 2 women & a man standing outside waiting for their friend closing the service station & one of the young women asked me what I was looking for. I replied, "Food & a bed." They jumped to it. All 4 of them started racking their brains for a place to stay & eat at & one of them, Barbara, began making phone calls. After 10mintues of nothing they eventually hit a home run with a small bed & breakfast only a kilometre away with a cheap, late night restaurant next door. They bundled me into the car & drove me to the B&B (I walked back to that point the next day). I've just noticed that Barbara is signed up on the list of prayers for unity now - all in the Lord's plans! It would be nice to know what's going on half the time though! I'll just trust & keep my head up :-) Yesterday I walked & prayed from Ferrara but after 11km was pulled over by the police & asked for my passport. I didn't have it. My top pocket was missing an item once again. This time however, it wasn't in my pocket. I'd left it at the hotel reception back in Ferrara. The policeman wasn't exactly happy with me & I wasn't exactly wallowing in pride either. The last time I didn't have my passport I was arrested (see final blog from the USA). Eventually they let me go though & I was left to do a 3hour return trip made up of walking & taking the train before I was back in the country side WITH my passport. I met a Ukrainian lady on the way & she roped me into helping her carry a mighty-heavy bag for her. Almost lost the circulation in my hand. Last night I arrived in a small town with no hotel & the parish priest sent me off to a place in the neighboring countryside. It turned out to be a homeless men's shelter! Oh well, I guess I was what I was. I had a great night trying to make conversation with the 12 men there & I felt very much at home with the guys as we silently ate, sorry, I mean, shoveled our meals down. I chatted for a while with one of the men particularly. He has a job lined up but he doesn't start for another 20 days. Until then, he has no home & no money. What was amazing though was how hard faced everyone was at the beginning of the night compared with how relaxed & jovial they all were by breakfast time. Two good meals, a bed & some relative security for a short time. It made a world of difference. We all made our way back to the train station this morning. We shook hands & then some caught the train, others sat down & waited for the day to 'happen' & I walked on. I attended mass this morning in the town of St Pietro & then stopped in the next town for lunch. Everything was shut except for the most expensive restaurant this side of Paris. I ordered 2 things off the menu, tortellini & a beef salad. Did you know that a beef salad in Italy means that you get long slivers of thinly cut raw meat draped across your salad? I didn't know that. Did you know that the sight of raw meat draped across artichokes is enough to make me feel sick? Unbelievable. I was so hungry, I was so embarrassed, I was so about to vomit in a posh restaurant. I flicked through my Italian phrase book but nowhere could I find, "Can I have the cow cooked please?" Thankfully, a few kilometres down the road I was able to buy some muesli bars. And if you're wondering, yes I did try it (add that to the sheep's stomach & cows blood of Brazil). I then ate made good use of chewing gum. So from Bologna, where I arrived a few hours ago, it's ciao for now. Who knows what's in store for this week! God does. God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you." Acts 13:38

Alps, Hearing & Troubled Gear

2008-03-31T01:53:00.000-07:00

Hello from the city in a lagoon, Venice. I haven't seen a single gondola yet! Ripped off. Today I'm walking from Venice to Padua & I'll have my rest day there. I'm really longing for that rest as well. It has been a physically demanding week. I left Dave in Austria with my old boots, which he's going to try & take back to Australia for me & I headed off towards the border. I crossed the Alps in 3days & was absolutly gob-smacked at how beautiful the mountains were. The Italian people have been very friendly & generous & I've had a few strangers buy me dinner or organise a place for me to stay or even haggle the local hotel down to a low price for me. I've had some history lessons along the way too. Crossing over from Austria to Italy I followed the original Roman road, which has been carved out of solid rock & winds up through the forested foothills. It was very quiet & making the trek & I began to imagine the perils of making this jounrey 2000 years ago. I got lost once but that's nothing new. I been lost twice on the mountains behind my parent's farm. One time was one of the funniest treks I've ever had! Thanks to the Lutheran Church in Villach for pointing me towards the old road in the first place! The valley I walked down through on the Italian side of the border has seen it's fair share of modern disasters. An 8.4 earthquake in 1978 that leveled everything & flood in 2004 that rose 40m above the rivers normal level & again wiped out countless villages. The clean-up job, in March 2008, is still in full swing. There were cranes, excovators, bull dozers & trucks at work everywhere. Despite the previous destruction, the beauty of the place still remained & so did the people's smiles, "It fall down, we build it up better!" I have never seen so many massive, jagged mountains & I don't think I've ever taken so many photos. It was snowing at the beginning of the week, then it rained & yesterday it was 21degC. It rained on Thursday all day long & I discovered that my water-proof backpack cover isn't water-proof, which is a shame, because it doesn't have many other redeemable features. It is a lovely shade of orange but I kind of bought it for the water-proofness factor. I also managed to bend one of my new walking poles navigating the notoriously difficult Italian roads. There has been very little consideration taken for pedestrians when building roads here & I have had to, for the majority of this week, walk in between the white line & crash barriers (approximately 50cm wide) or jump over the crash barrier & walk on the massive slope running down into the small canals that line all roads. This is the main reason why this week has been so difficult. A 40km day feels like 60. My feet twist & turn on the uneven 'balance beam' I've had to walk along. In order to stop myself falling off the edge or falling into on-coming traffic I've had to use my walking poles more than ever. It was while leaping across a small canal after running out of room on the road that I bent the pole. It's still useable though & kind of matches the rest of my equipment now. That day I also stepped on my camelbak water system mouth piece as I was picking my bag up & snapped it clean off. I still have the tube though so it's ok for now. My backpack shoulder straps have began the pull apart so my greatest tool of all, a role of sticky tape I bought in South America, is being used liberally. The new boots have had the ultimate 'breaking in' period with all the twisting & turning but that has caused problems for my feet. My 1st blister in 5months plus some minor tendornites caused me to finish walking a few hours early a couple of times. I even resorted to crawling yesterday, but that was because there was no room to walk on the side of a bridge so I had to crawl along under the road signs & wedged between the crash barrier & bridge edge. It was a little absurd :-) I've discovered that my hearing is a little more accurate than I had realised after 2 incidents in 1day. While I'm walking & praying, I walk facing the oncoming traffic so that I can see what's coming at me. However, I can't see the cars coming from behind that are overtaking. Hence, I walk looking forward but listening backwards. Serious. I can now tell if a car is passing from behind on the other side of the road or overtaking & about to pass within half a metre of me & I can tell roughly how fast they are going. The 2 moments in 1day involved a snake & a drunk man on a bike. I was walking through the grass on the side of the road, with heavy traffic beside me when a bird took off out of the grass. A metre of so from it a heard a another small, short sound & without even thinking about I thought, "Whoah! A snake!" I stopped & peered in & eventually spotted a 1m brown with black spots snake. It stayed for a moment & then shot off into the canal. As I walked on I was left wondering how I knew it was a snake & I really don't know but obivously a snake in grass makes a different sound to a bird or a lizard?? The 2nd moment was scary. An intoxicated man was struggling to walk his bike down a small town road in the early twilight. He was around 70m in front of me when he turned the bike & without looking, wheeled it out across the road towards the other side. I could hear a car coming from behind & without turning around, new that they were on a collision course. I shouted, "No!" but he staggered out as the car shot past my right hand side at about 80km/hr. The driver slammed on the brakes & the only sound that could be heard was the scream of 4 tyres on bitumen. I honestly thought I was about to watch a man die. It was a horrible 2seconds. As it was though, the squeeling tyres frightend the drunk man so much that he litterally jumped for the edge of the road right at the last milli-second as the car crunched his rear wheel. As the smoke settled the locals all came out to the end of their driveways to see what had happened. Everyone was ok but the bike was no more. It wasn't even wheelable. I was very thankful that no one had died & I'm becoming more & more thankful for the gift of hearing. I said the gift of hearing! Yeah it's 8 o'clock. I'd better get moving now, Padua is a 6hr walk from here & it's already 11am. I normally finish each blog with a piece of scripture but I just received an email from a fellow in England by the name of Tony Palmer & if it's ok with you Tony, I'd like to leave you with Tony's opening line. God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
Jesus prayed for it in John17, "That we may be ONE… SO THAT THE WORLD WOULD BELIEVE…!!!" Christian Unity is not an effort for “good Church politics”… it is our Lord’s dieing prayer! It really amazes me that our Lord prayed for unity of the Church BEFORE He had even given birth to it!!!

Metabilism, Boots & Batten

2008-03-23T23:05:00.000-07:00

A very happy & holy Easter to you from Tauchendorf in southern Austria! I can see it snowing through the window right now so I'm happy to be at the computer, though it'll be short lived as I'll be back on the road again in a few hours time. The week began in hot sunshine, quickly turned to rain followed by long, overcast cool days & now it's snowing. I haven't seen anything other than mountains & valleys this week as the road I walked wound it's way up, down, arond & some times even under. It was actually tiring having to conistantly try & find a path to walk along. The roads here have no shoulder & are often guarded by barrier-rails. I've had no choice but to 'run the gauntlet' along these roads a few times but I've also walked along bike tracks, farm lanes, rivers & rail-tracks. On a number of occaisions I've been walking past ski-lifts taking skiiers up to the mountain top & I've longed to drop my bag & have a quick ski but with the broken church on my mind I've pushed on. Austria is the first country where I haven't learnt the language because so many people here speak english, so I just haven't had to push myself. Dave Batten, from Australia, did send me an email at the start of Austria with some helpful phrases, though "I ride a kangaroo to work everday" and "I am a little fat pig" haven't come in handy as yet. Thanks for your input though Dave. I've been able to eat very well here in Austria & consequently my metabolism has shot through the roof & I'm starting to put a little weight back on. Walking 30 to 50km a day & putting weight on is no mean feet! I regularly wake at 3am with my stomach rumbling & a small meal waiting for me beside my bed. I began the walk at 93kg, fell to as low as 81kg & I'm now edging towards 87kg. I had planned 2days of rest for Easter with a family my good friend Dave had become acquaninted with on a trip last year. I was looking foward to meeting them & resting at their house. As I walked into the town the thought crossed my mind that it was possible that Dave might have actually flown over for Easter - he'd do something like that & not tell me. And then 10mins later there he was standing in front of me with a stupid grin on his face, "Hello Samuel." It was a great Easter suprise & so my last 2days have been filled with a lot of catching up & a lot of laughing. We've been named cheeky 1 & cheeky 2 by the family here, which brings back memories of our time together on mission in 2002 when we were labelled as shifty 1 & shifty 2. Some things don't change. The Stromberger family have been excellent hosts here on their farm & Dave & I have been treated to a true Autrian experience. From painted easter eggs, to a Saturday night candle lit vigil mass, to a full orchestra & operatic choir Sunday morning mass, to a selection of Austrian foods, it has been a beautiful couple of days. The two daughters living back at home, Eva & Carol, have very strong ties with the Franciscan order & so there have been many hours of conversation about faith, areas of struggling unity & places of need for mission work. It really has been an uplifting Easter. Dave brought over with him a brand new pair of Scarpa boots for me. I'd been trying to find a new pair since Canada but size 16 (Euro-50) just weren't available anywhere in the world. Dave eventually had found a pair of 2006 boots that had been in storage somewhere in Autralia & so they are now ready to replace the boots that Damian & Tatiana Burger bought for me while travelling through Costa Rica. The boots themselves didn't arrive until I was in central Nicaragua & so they've taken me north from there, all the way to Canada, across the ice of Vladivostok Bay & down from Moscow to southern Austria. That's around 8,500km in one pair of boots. Phenomonal. Mind you, they don't look like they would have lasted much longer. I been wearing the new boots everwhere for the last two days to try & wear them in & I walked 12km of today's walk last night to give them a little more time to loosen up. I wore my last boots without being able to wear them in & ended with horrible blisters on the balls of my feet & tendonitis. I'm hoping to avoid that this time around. Speaking of blisters, I haven't had one now since the USA - see how the new boots treat me. The change in seasons has seen a change in activity amongst the locals. I've struck up a few conversations with people out in their garden or field, preparig the soil for planting. Apart from the light snow falling outside right now it is getting a lot greener. I'll have to wait a few more days though before I see the real change as I'm about to cross the Italian Alps & will end this week down around Venice & Padua. I received the sad news that my great-auntie Erica had passed away last week so it was sad to hear of her passing (we had a good relationship based on our mutual love of football & cricket!) but despite this I'm really pumped & ready to go. The short 12km walk yesterday on Easter Sunday evening was different to the times in prayer lately. It was a real Easter "He is risen" time & the resurection was menaing more to me than I think it ever has & so I'm a little excited now to be pushing on, praying on & extending the invitation to prayer. In new boots. God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him." Mark 16:6
ps: Thanks for the presents, Naomi & Bek! All the chocolate has been eaten :-)

Geese, Gas & Gear

2008-03-15T08:55:00.000-07:00

Hello from Austria! I crossed out of Slovakia in the rain on Wednesday & arrived in a town near Vienna for a rest day with some good friends. The Shneller-Scharau family lived in Adelaide for the 2 years I was working there with YMT Australia & so we've been planning to meet well before I left for Brazil. I have ended up staying here for 3nigths already & will stay again tonight, not because I've stopped walking but because they've come & picked me up each evening as I finish walking. It almost feels like I have a 9 to 5 job now! Their youngest, Daniel, is having trouble pronouncing my name so I'm either called Yam or Anne at the moment. Still, it's better than young Julian Pannell back in Australia who couldn't pronounce my name for 5months & referred to me as Dum. Yam is fine. It's been so nice to have some familiarity around me. Yesterday was a miserable wet day with no where to walk along the side of the road (I walked for a while along a canal instead) but there has always been ample time to pray & to meet people & extend the invitation. Today was a perfect anti-yesterday with beautiful sunshine & open roads. Today was also the 1st time since October, 2007, that I was able to wear a t-shirt. My health is ok considering I walk a marathon a day. I had a quick check-up with a doctor the other day due to an inflamed & rash-covered foot. The doctor didn't quite know what to do simply because he had no idea how the body should react to walking the distances I do. We both agreed that it would be ok & sure enough the next day it was back to normal. I accidently omitted two funny stories from the previous two weeks but couldn't let the oppurtunity pass to not finally 'tell the tales'. The 1st was from the 'trumpeting' walk with Wojtek in Poland. We were walking down through a steep valley when a flying 'V' of geese flew over our heads. Wojtek & I began to talk about the geese migration when another group came into view. This lot though had no 'V' happening at all but were completly random. I yelled out in full voice to them, "Form a V, it's easier!" At that point the geese suddenly changed position & formed a sort of flying 'T'. Wojtek cupped his hands around his mouth & yelled out to them, "No! He said a V, not a T!" We both roared with laughter as once again they all changed poistion, but this time into a flying 'V'. We were happy to have helped them on their long trip home :-) The other story I forgot to tell wasn't overly funny at the time, more of a lesson in how not to do something stupid. The mistake I made was filling my 3L water bladder up with carbonated water instead of plain water. I'd walked a few kilomtres before I reached for my 1st sip & so enough time had passed for the pressure in the water bladder to rise sharply. I have a Camelbak water system & so all I have to do to drink is place the tube that hangs by my side in my mouth, bite down on the mouth piece & suck. Due to the gas inside the bladder, as soon as I bit down on the mouth piece the water cannoned out at such a force that it practically bruised my kidneys. I wasn't ready to swallow the water so some ended up in my lungs & the rest ended up all over my face as I hastily pulled the tube from my mouth. The ppressure was so great that the mouth piece couldn't close off after I'd released it so with water flying everwhere I had to turn it off at the valve. I was left standing on the side of the highway coughing & spluttering as water dripped down off my head. Carbonated water:1, Sam:0. The tap water here in Austria is drinakable so that solves the gas problem for now. It's a good thing it's God doing the work on this trip & not me. Big problems otherwise. With the rising temperatures I have decided to send home all my winter gear. It's a few kg worth so it's a welcome drop-off. Alexander & Birgit Scneller-Scharau also helped to restock me with new pants & a jacket. My water-proof pants & jacket had been destroyed crossing Russia & Belarus because of the slat they spread on the roads to melt the snow. The passing cars & trucks would spray me with salty water & the salt has destroyed the water-proofing membrane. So I have a new jacket & some cooler cotton treking pants to replace the water-proof ones. As I said at the start of this blog, there have been plety of oppurtunities to pray (that is, from the time I wake up until the time I fall asleep). I'm struggling a little though to not get distracted as I walk & pray & I'm constantly having to re-focus. I even got destracted today while apologising to the Lord for being distracted. None-the-less, the prayer for Christian unity continues; for the unity of the family, our unity through forgiveness, our unity in truth & our unity in love. I guess I'll be writing from southern Austria next week sometime over the Easter break (I'm 2days ahead of schedule so I'll take them as rest days for Easter). God bless & may you have a holy week. Sam.
"There is a time for everything & a season for every activity under heaven." Ecc 3:1

Prayer, Praise & a Hair Stylist

2008-03-10T01:16:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Trnava in southern Slovakia. I didn't walk as far this past week as I had planned but that was becuase of a very full schedule meeting people. I received a very handy Slovakian language lesson from 4 youth workers in Kysucke at the start of the week & I've been practising since. The Slovakian people have been very patient with me & generous with their time. The youth workers at Kysucke rang ahead to the city of Zilina to some counter-parts who welcomed me & organised for me to attend an eccumenical meeting being held that afternoon. Luthern Pastor Rad drove me to the meeting where I was invited to attened their prayer evening the following night. I walked on that night & again the next day so at 4pm I had to find a bus & ride back to Zilina, 50km behind me. Pastor Rad was very hospitable & offered me a place to stay & cooked up some great food for me. The meeting was very blessed & had contirbutors from many denominations. It was a beautiful first step towards unity in truth & love. One or the women attending the evening, Tracy, then invited me to travel down to the capital city of Bratislava for a major "Unity Concert" in 2days time. I couldn't afford the time to just hang around so after a careful look at the map we agreed on a pick-up point some 130km from Zilina. That plan had a spanner thrown in the works though when a journalist wanted an interview the next morning as I was preparing to head back to where I'd finished walking. The interview took a few hours & so Pastor Rad was very kind in throwing me in his car & speeding me out to my starting point. I only made a portion of my allotted distance for that day, leaving me with a 44km day to my 1:15pm pick-up point. So I began the marathon at 4:30am & pushed through, praying all the way & arriving 5mins late at 1:20pm. I-was-stuffed. I felt like I was going to self-combust over the last 15km. Tracy & her daughter shouted me to a quick lunch & then we were off to Bratislava. The concert, a night of praise & worship, was very re-focussing & up-lifting. A journalist came & met with me just as the evening was getting underway but after that I was free to just 'be'. Vlad, one of the guys there, invited me up to speak for a few minutes but spent the majority of the night sitting beside me translating everything. I now know how to say, "Holy Lord" quite fluently. His future sister-in-law, Ivana, also chipped in to help with translating while Vlad was leading up the front. They have a 24hr house of prayer in Bratislava & the shifts are taken up by people from all over the city & spectrum of churches. Again, a brilliant first step towards the unity of Christians in truth & love. Ivana made a phone call that night & organised a place for me to stay back where I'd finished walking (it was her home town). Tracy & her daughter drove me back that night & I was welcomed by Lucas, who didn't speak english, but we communicated just fine. The next morning we prayed together & then he took me to the local Evangelical church for their service. I then walked to Trnava, where I am now, & made it just in time for the Catholic mass. I had been given a contact here but that fell through & so one of the young women at the church simply offered me a place to sleep at her paretns place. I couldn't believe that she would just open up her home to a complete stranger, but then again, I really shouldn't be suprised at anything. I got a haircut the other day, my first since Snyder, Texas back in mid September. I ended up at a salon where haircutting is an art rather than a job. I really should have just asked for it to be all shaved off. Instead, the hairdresser (or should I say, 'Stylist') played with my hair for a minute & then started hacking at it with a cut-throat blade. She didn't use scissors once. She swiped, she sliced, she scared me half to death. I thought I was going to loose an ear. I've noticed that the mullet is very fashionable in Slovakia & she was very keen to not touch the back of my head. It's almost as if it's a fashion-declared national park & thus for viewing only & not for the taking! It took a few minutes of debate but I eventually convinced her that a mullet was not on. She sliced & slashed a little at the back & stood back as if to say, "How's that?" She'd given me a mini-mulllet. I insisted that she had to take more off it & so reluctantly she did. By the time I walked out of the salon I had a roughed-up just-got-out-bed back & a nike swoosh sweeping across the front & it was all held together by some sort of bizzare hair product. If anyone has seen the movie Dumb & Dumber you'll proabably remember them walking out of a salon & ruining the stylists good work by running their hands through their hair & bringing it back to normal. I did the exact same thing, & then put my cap back on. The Nike swoosh across my forehead greets me each morning now when I wake up so I just convince myself that I'm the most fashionable missionary on the face of the planet (apart from Blair McWhinney) & walk on. I've really enjoyed meeting the Slovakian people & they have certainly made the long distances on the road feel a little easier. I particularly get a kick out of the road signs here. All the signs with the typical bubble head person on it have been out-fitted with a hat of sorts. The figure on the pedestrian crossing is wearing as top-hat & the workman on road-works sign is wearing a beret. It's brilliant :-) Also, I few very big thank you's to a few poeple who have assissted me lately in acquiring a few new items to replace my old or damaged equipment. To the covenant community in Lublin, Poland, to Wojtek & the covenant community in Bielsko Biala, Poland & to the Pollard's in Australia, thank you so much for the new, walking poles, head-lamp, beanie & boots. I'm still wearing the boots I had delivered to Nicaragua & they are well beyond wearable. I have to grab a few stones out of them each day as I have 'ventilation' on the sides. The new boots should arrive next week & to Dave Batten who organised them for me (it took 3months to find a pair of size 16 (50 Euro)) thank you very much. I'll cook a nice dinner for you in late July. So with my 8000km old boots hanging on by a thread, I'm heading into Bratislava over the next 2days & then across the border into Austria. God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in." Matt 25:35

Friends, a Storm & Trumpets

2008-03-04T06:01:00.000-08:00

Hello from Cadca in northern Slovakia! Poland ended with a lot of fun & a lot of rain. An enormous storm passed over Europe 2days ago causing major damage & loss of life with torrential rain & massive winds. I almost walked through it but was saved by some planning I had nothing to do with. I arrived in Krakow last Tuesday just in time to see the sun set over the beautiful & historic city centre. Krakow was a scheduled rest day & I am very grateful to the City on the Hill Covenant Community for organising a place for me to stay while there. I stayed with Marek, Rita & their 4 children for 2nights. A big thank you to Sarah for giving up her bedroom for me! The extent of their generosity became evident when, over dinner, Marek asked me where I was from & what I was doing in Poland. He had invited me to stay simply on the premise that he'd been told that a man passing through Krakow needed somewhere to sleep. That was enough for him. He hadn't asked who the man was or what he was doing, he simply let me in & then his 15yr old daughter moved into her older sister's room so I could have a room to myself. I spent most of my day-off tending to 76emails but I did pop out for an hour with Marek to visit the Basilica of the Sister's of Divine Mercy where Saint Faustina Kowalska's ministry continues today, bringing the divine mercy of our Lord to the world along with the words many are well familiar with now, "Jesus, I Trust in You". I walked from Krakow to a small town in the Polish hill-country & stayed with Marek's uncle & auntie before countinuing further on to Wadowice (the birth-place of Pope John Paul II) & Andrychow where I was picked up by Michal from Bielsko Biala. I wasn't scheduled to pass through Bielsko but because I passing so close the City on the Hill Community had invited me to stay with them & then they'd return me to Andrychow to continue walking. I thought it would be as scheduled & that I'd stay for the night & that would be it but they were under the impression that I would be staying a little while longer & so had organised a few things for the next day. I was frustrated to begin with but decided to stay for one day & I'm very glad I did. That night Michal invited me to speak at a youth meeting. I agreed though almost lost my bottom jaw when I walked into the jam-packed Church filled with hundred's of youth from all over southern Poland. Even Marek's son, Kristopher, was there playing drums. It was an amazing evening filled with songs, dramas, film, adoration & a beautiful altar call where hundreds walked forward as a sign of commitment to Christ. The next day I had breakfast with Michal & a few of his friends before heading out to Wojtek's home for lunch with his family. We were all around the same age & appeared to have a similar sense of humour so had a blast for the whole day. Michal & Wojtek have discovered a new pass-time in the Polish hills, trumpet playing. Neither of them can play but that hasn't stopped them buying two old-style trumpets, which they let loose with in as many obscure places as possible. They're even on youtube, playing a trumpet submerged in a lake. Spending time with them was one laugh after another. That day saw the storm pass over that area of Poland. I should have been walking over a mountian pass that day & if I had, I would have found myself in a 100km/hr blizzard & frigid conditions so I was very pleased that the community had organised a few things for me. In the afternoon we headed off to a young adults prayer group where I was invited to share once again. The next day Michal drove Wojtek & myself back out to Andrychow & Wojtek joined me for the 36km walk to Zywiec. Wojtek guided me along an alternate route that avoided the mountain pass & so instead, we wound our way along a fast flowing river & then a chain of lakes nestled between enormous forest covered hills. It continued raining all day long & I discovered that all the salt spray from the roads in Belarus & Russia (salt is spread on the roads to melt the snow) had ruined the water-proofing of my jacket & pants. I would have gained as much protection from a cotton t-shirt. Wojtek was also saturated, but his gear wasn't water-proof to begin with so his soaked-ness came with less disappointment :-) Wojtek carried a trumpet with him all day long & upon our arrival in Zywiec an hour after sunset, we stood in the town square & 'announced' our arrival. It looked as though we'd had around 3inches of rain that day judging by the amount of rainwater that dribbled out the end of the trumpet. Then I realised that mass was on in a nearby church so we blew no more. Sorry to anyone in Zywiec who had the gospel interupted that evening... The article from the journalists 2weeks ago was in circulation this week & for those final 2days in Poland it was easy to get the invitation to pray for unity across. Most people I met had read the article & so all I had to do was smile & ask if they would please remember to pray for unity. On my last day in Poland I was walking through a tiny village when two elderly women began yelling at me form the 2nd floor window of their appartment. "Hey! Hey!" They were gesturing for me to come on up & visit. They had apparently been standing at the window talking & watching the world pass by when they noticed 'The Australian' walking past. The fed me better than I've been fed in years. They were hilarious. Their neice came over & translated for us but she couldn't stop laughing half the time because of their constant antics. Age had not slowed them down! Eventually I was on my way again & in the late afternoon I crossed the deserted, un-staffed border into Slovakia. The scenery is incredible here. Absolutly amazing. I haven't seen a flat piece of land yet. I had to return to the border this morning to meet & talk with a television crew but I'm now back on the trail heading south towards Bratislava. I am once again unknown & once again having to learn a new language. How quickly it all changes. God bless & please pray on. Sam.
"Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Romans 12:13
("On the morning of the third day there was thunder & lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, & a very loud trumpet blast." Ex19:16)

Drunk Drivers & Don't Doubt Thomas

2008-02-22T06:43:00.000-08:00

Hello from Nowy Brzesko in southern Poland. I began the week on schedule, had an unscheduled rest day half way & I'm now 2days ahead of schedule! That basically means that I've walked the sole off my boots this week with some huge distances. The beautiful sunshine & consequent lack of snow plus having walking poles again has made it possible to get to where I am. I hadn't planned to be here, it just sort of happened. I left the fantastic hospitality of the Lukasik family in Lublin last Wednesday & only made it 20km before I was set upon by 3 journalists - the kind of highway encounter that's welcomed. They had received a phone call from Fr Bogumil in Biala Podlaska & driven over 300km trying to find me. They were pretty pleased to have spotted me after so much driving & I was pleased to hear that they represented the national Catholic magazine & were looking to spread the call to pray for unity a lot further than my legs can carry it. We sat in a hotel for an hour & talked before I continued walking & they followed me at a distance trying to get a good photo. The next day I was walking 35km to a town called Anopol but with no hospitality on offer & the motel bankrupt I had to walk off into the twilight to a hotel some 15km further on. I bought a new head lamp in Lublin along with the poles so the night was a little tamer than previous weeks. I arrived at Orozow at 8pm but the hotel there was full. The next hotel? Well, it was another 26km on at a town called Sandomierz. I was really looking forward to a bed & feeling so tired that the thought of walking 26km on top of the day's 50km thus far wasn't particularly nice. I sat in the restaraunt there & ate a large meal, re-stocked my food & water supplies & started walking at around 9pm. It was a quiet, narrow country road to Sandomierz & the full-moon was so bright in the night sky that the head lamp made no difference, I could see at least a km up along the road. It was very peaceful walking & I took the opporunity to spend an hour in prayer. While praying & thinking about our Lord carrying the cross up Calvary I was joined along the fence line of a small cluster of houses by a group of dogs who barked & snarled at me for a good 100m. I thanked the Lord for the help in visualising the ugly path up Calvary but asked if it be ok if we skip the visuals & audios for the crucifixtion. I was only joking but I was soon lamenting my joke when a man drove past me very slowly & pulled over up ahead. I was well passed the houses by now & out in open space. As I drew near he crossed the road & started saying something to me. He walked straight up to me & put his hand on my chest. After the past few weeks of 'encounters' in Russia & Belarus I was ready for anything. I backed away a little & he just kept talking. It was at that point that I got a whif of his toxic vodka breathe & realised he was more than a little under the weather. He could speak a little english & so managed to get his question across; he wanted me to get in his car with him & go back to his place for a drink. It wasn't exactly a tough decision but he wouldn't take no for an answer. He knew how to say please & so he just kept pleading. I told him what I was doing (the only thing I can say in Polish) & that I had to keep on moving & praying. He suddenly became quite excited & 'really' wanted me to go back to his house so that he could take a photo of me & call his friend form the Gazette. A few more minutes of "Pleeeeeasse!" from him & I wished him well & said goodbye. I extended my hand to & asked what his name was. He shook my hand & said, "Thomas". I walked on quickly & turned my head lamp off in case he decided to drive after me. And he did. About 3km later he flashed past me but not having seen me until the last minute he pulled over a good 200m ahead of me (reactions time from alcohol was probably a factor as well). I couldn't be sure if he was still alone or had picked up friends & I was in a patient mood so I just stepped off the road & sat behind a bushy tree. I'd either wait until he left or passed out & then continue. After a few minutes he staggered out of the car & looked up & down the road, probably a bit confused, & then hopped back in, turned around & drove back to whence he came. I stood up & walked on out across the moon-lit country side. A car would come from Thomas's direction every now & then so I'd step off the road until they'd passed by & then resume. He didn't ever come back but a car from the other direction spotted me & pulled over (I wasn't stepping off for the north-bound traffic). He was driving a brand new white hatchback, which for some reason comforted me (I've since come to the conclusion that gansters don't drive new white hatchbacks). He wound down his window & in perfect english asked, "Do you need help? My friend Thomas called me & said you are walking around the world?" The man's name was Michael & would you believe it, he was a journalist for the state's newspaper. Thomas actually did want to help. Michael wanted an interview the next day but was concerned about me walking along that particular road at night. I assured him that it was actually a nice road to walk along & the only problem I'd had was a drunk Thomas. He looked at me sharply, "He's drunk?" At that moment none other than Thomas rang on Michael's mobile & Michael started to get into him a bit, "You're drunk! You are. I can't believe you're drunk!" Michael was very friendly & after he'd given Thomas an ear full he appolgised, gave me his business card & headed back to Sandomierz. I arrived there at around 1am & as I hobbled down the main street looking for a hotel, the new white hatchback re-appeared & Michael was back to make sure I was ok. He offered to take me on a tour of the town & so off we went at 1am around Poland's oldest township. It was great. I was struggling to stay awake but it was great none the less. There was a church there that first opened it's doors in the 700's & is still in full use. All the modern buildings where erected in the 1400's. It was incredible. Michael had a side business as tour guide during the summer months so he new the place well. He dropped me off at a hotel at 1:30am & I finally slept. The next day we met & spoke about the mission & Raphael, the newspapers photographer, took some shots. It was over 40km to the next hotel & with it being close to 3pm (I sleept in a lot) by the time we finshed talking I decided to stay there a 2nd night. I walked on to Polaniec (with people waving at me the whole way having read Michael's article in the paper) & then to Opotowiec last night. Around 15km from Opotowiec I stepped over a number plate & for the sake of something to do, memorised the number, repeating it over & over as I walked on. 5km later I detoured into a petrol station to re-fuel my water supply. A brand new BMW was roaring out of the exit but the driver caught sight of me, slammed on his brakes, ripped it into reverse, lit up the tyres & swung around up beside me. I wasn't wuite sure what to expect. The man driving jumped out of his car, "I have a problem! I saw you walking this morning. I've lost my number plate, have you seen it?" I can't tell you how smart I felt when I reeled off his number & told him exactly where it was. He nearly hugged me. He asked me to come with him to show him where it was & without a second thought I jumped into the hotted-up BMW. My pride soon disappeared though as we took off down the road & I realised that this guy was also drunk. I don't think I need to point out that alcohol & fast cars don't mix. I was holding on for dear life. Thankfully the plate was only 5km away. As we approached the plate I told him to stop & stop he did - as fast as anti-lock braking will allow you when you slam your foot down on the brake at full force. He jumped out, grabbed the plate & kissed it, holding it aloft like heavy-weight champion of the world. I was a little more concerned about getting back to the petrol station alive. We took off back down the road as fast as his traction-control would allow when you slam your foot down on the accelerator (are you getting the picture of how this guy was driving?). He had an un-nerving habit of turning to me when he wanted to say something & his hands would follow. Twice in 1min he had to swerve back onto the road. I almost fell out of the car when we pulled up at the petrol station as fast as anti-lock braking allows when... you get the idea. From now on I am not even going to look twice at a number plate as I step over it. I have a feeling that fellow might be putting his BMW safty features to the test pretty soon. So, the sun is shining, my knee is feeling a lot better, the country side is spectacular & the walk continues. The reception at the churches I've past hasn't exactly been pleasant. Some have welcomed me but others have actually pushed shooed me off the property like a rabid dog. One priest even threw my calling card back in my face & closed the door. I was very thankful to meet Adam, the pastor of a church in Sandomierz. He came & visited me at the hotel & we spoke for a while & prayed together. Please continue to pray for unity & hopefully I'll be logging in from Slovakia next week. God bless! Sam.
"Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap." Luke 21:24

Rejected at Belarus Border & 'Babar'

2008-02-19T00:59:00.000-08:00

So it turns out that the visa issued to me for Belarus in fact wasn't. For those who didn't catch the final blog from Canada, I had a lot of problems with my passport & trying to get a Belarus Visa. When I finally did get my passport back (having already missed my flight to Russia) I had the Russian visa in my passport but the Belarus visa wasn't there. What I did have was 4pages of official documents written in Belarussian & a receipt for the Belrus visa. I assumed it must be the visa but was a little suspicious. While travelling on the trans-siberian railway with Justin we met a lady who worked on the Russian/Chinese border at passport control. I handed the documents to her & asked if she knew what they were. She shook her head at first but then said, "Oh, it's a visa for Belarus." I was glad to hear that but thought that the big test would come when I crossed the border into Belarus. On that particular day the guard asked for my documents, not caring to even view my passport. He read through the 4pages & wished me the best in my walk. I then of course had the run in with the intelligence agent (KGB) in the midle of the country & he too went thruogh all my papers & passed me to continue. All of this strongly indicated that I was indeed holding official visa documentation, but that wasn't the case. When I went to cross the border from Belarus to Poland the guard passed the documents back to me sighting that it wasn't a visa & he gave me an address in the city of Brest (10km away) where I had to go. That address turned out to be the police headquarters, not the public office but the no sign, no front offie, big dark building with massive padded doors headquarters. After a few helpful dircections from passing officers I found myself sitting at the desk of a passport officer on the 2nd floor. He asked what the problem was, I explained everything, showing him all the documentation (including receipts) & the problem that had now arisen. He flicked through everything & then peered up at me & uttered those oh-so-heart-warming words, "You are in very big trouble." I wasn't sure at that point if that meant I was going to prison or being flown home at my own expense but I figured I'd get a bed either way so I'd just sit tight for the time being. Apparently the 4 pages of documentation where nothing more than a request from a Belarus Hotel for a visa. Why did I get through all the security checks then? I think it was a combination of Holy Spirit & the fact that there are so few tourists in Belarus that they weren't sure what they were actually looking for. The officer led me down the hallway to the Chief of Police & we talked for a short time. I wasn't sure of what the outcome was but I was led back to the first office & asked to hand over my passport. I was asked if I had money, which I did, so he offered me my ticket out. For $200 he would issue me an on the spot visa so that I could leave the country. I am very thankful that that particular officer was friendly & actually had a sense of humour (He thought it was brilliant that my dad has a Belarus tractor on the farm in Tasmania). A second offier escorted me to the bank & all the papr work was completed. I had to sign off on a few documents & then my hand written visa was stuck into my passport. They then drove me to the train station because I wasn't permitted to cross the border on foot. Getting through customs was an adventure as well. I still don't know what the problem was but my line had to be shut down while they processed me. There were officers coming from everywhere, checking my passport, my visa & looking me up & down. I just stood there & smiled for half an hour while they debated something back & forth. The clock was ticking for my train departure. It almost appeared as thy they got so frustrated with what ever the problem was that they just stamped my passport & told me to get out there. I was happy to oblige. I made the train with a few minutes to spare. The short 7km train ride across the border finally landed me in Poland & I am continuing on my way. As I walk I sometimes entertain myself by coming up with a 'Top Ten List' on any particular topic. The other day I had a go at the top ten things to do while overseas. Number one... "Walk across an anti-western dictatorship without a valid visa!" Try doing that on your day off. Poland has been a pleasure so far. Winter has set back in for a few days so it's very white once again but I'm told this is the last expected snow fall for the year. The people here have been very hospitable & have fed me well. I'm struggling with the language a little though. I saw a road sign 3days ago & the 7 letter word on it contained only one vowel. That's just mean. Father Bogumil & his youth group in Biala Podlaska tried to teach me some helpful Polish phrases (& they have been) but they asked me at one point if I knew what "Babar" was. Babar is a cartoon in Australia & so I said, "Yes! of course, Babar is the elephant." They roared with laughter, some of them even blushing tad. Ok, so "Baba" (no 'r') actually means, "An old Woman" in Polish, not an elephant. I've tried not to stick my foot in it since then but there's a lot ore time to pass yet. In the next town of Radzyn Podlaska I was invited to speak at one of the numerous Sunday masses & to share about the mission & the invittion to pray for unity. The problem though was that none of the four prists spoke English & I don't speak Polish. One priest, however, spoke Italian so we ended up wih this bizzare situation where I spoke to a congregation of Poles in Spanish, which was translated by the priest into Italian & then again back into Polish. I think we got the message across. The faith is strong here & people have been very welcoming of the call to pray for unity. I was completly unaware that therre were people waiting for me in the city of Lublin until I was only 20km away. Good timing. I'm now having a rest day with new friends here in this busstling little city & heading off to their prayer meeting this evening, which I am really hanging out for. My body is still faulting & my knee has seized up solid a few times. I'm heading out this afternoon to try & find replacemet walking poles to ease the stress & hoopefully allow it to heal. I was offered to be taken to a doctor today to have it checked out but I declined. I'll only be told to rest it :-) For anyone following the walk in Poland, please be aware that I am trying to make up for lost days so my schedule will most likely change between Lublin & Krakow. That's about it for now. Thankyou to everyone for the blog comments & emails of late. It has been very uplifting. Please pray on & I hope you have a blessed week. From Lublin in eastern Poland, it's goodbye for now. God bless! Sam.
"You will see it with your own eyes & say, 'Great is the Lord - even beyond the borders of Israel!'" Malachi 1:5

Twilight Pursuit, KGB & a Dark Forest

2008-02-10T05:30:00.000-08:00

G'day all! How are you doing? As the title susgests, I've had another 'interesting' week on the road. The sort that makes me think that an office job isn't such a bad life after all! Where to begin... Ok, so I left Minsk after a fantastic rest day at the Waterman's apartment. They invited around a small group in the evening & I was able to extened the invitation to pray for unity without leaving the building! That's such an easier method. I had a translator, Olga, who did a great job & at the end of our meeting Rose Waterman brought out a birthday cake & everyone started to sing. I joined in, not knowing whose birthday it was & just before we got to the person's name I leant over to Olga & asked who's birthday this was for. She shrugged her shoulders but I was a bit stumped a few seconds later when they sang the name - it was mine! My birthday was another week away but Rose had thought that I probably wouldn't get a cake where ever I happened to be so she'd organised one for me. It was great :-) Thanks Rose! As I walked out of Minsk it was drowned in mist & it added a real character to the streets of centuries old buildings. I stayed that night in a neighbouring town with the Waterman's friends who vistied the night before. They live in a typical communist bloke of flats & there was very little room, particularly with their 4 children, with whom I shared the only bedroom. Mum & Dad slept on the fold-out couch in the living room. The kids were classic, ranging in age from 1 to 10 years. The 1yr old, Matthew, spent most of his time giving his food to the dog & then taking equal portion back from the dog's scraps. The 2nd youngest ate half of my dessert while I had my back turned & the 3rd had a tendancy to smile at me & then punch me in the groin. Thanks mate. I really appreciated their hospitality. From there I continued on towards the Polish border but the walk started to get a little tougher again. The weather was great, around 7degC most days, well above the February average of -2. The air was crisp & the green grass beginning to break through the dormant fields. The only thing that wasn't filling me with a sense of peacefullness though was the 2 guys running through the forest off to my side. I caught a glimpse of one shodowy figure flash across a clearing off to my right as I headed down a deserted country road. Straight away I got that sinking feeling that I was about to have another unpleasant encounter & sure enough, about a minute later, out they came. They exited the forest 20m behind me & I did a quick shoulder check on them to see them running at me. As soon as I did the shoulder check though they quickly slowed to a walk & pretended to be just 'out for a stroll'. Great, they appear to be dumb as well. Pretty quickly they'd caught up & flanked me on either side. I didn't stop walking & I didn't stop praying. They asked if I had a cigarette for them, the answer to that rather obvious, & then proceeded to ask me if I was carrying any money, you know, as you do in general conversation with a complete stranger. I turned, walking backwards, & told them to go home. That was my 1st real look at them. They were in their mid to late teens & 1 was about half my size & weight. The other though was a descent size but what made him a little scarier was everytime he got within a metre of two his right hand would slide back to something tucked into the back of his trousers. I don't know what he had but for that reason I didn't let them get too close. They hounded me for nearly a kilometre & I was just waiting for them to make their move. It was almost tempting to stand & fight but I wanted to avoid confrontation & try & do a little better than last week. So, I tightened the straps on my bag, swallowed some pride & started running. Unlike last week though, these guys weren't drunk so they were quite able in keeping up. After a good 400m I slowed down & they were still on my tail. I started to run again & they gave chase again, jibbing me the whole time. They got within a metre of me so I made a sudden stop & fronted as though to fight them. They cowered away very quickly & I turned & kept running. They caught up again pretty quickly so I double-backed in between them & crossed the road just before a line of traffic came past. We both contiued on down the road on either side with them being at least 30m ahead of me the whole time. Eventually the opportunity came for them to cross but they were too busy watching the traffic in the other direction as they crossed that they didn't notice me cross back over. I gave them a smile from my side as they looked at me in frustration. At next chance though they split so that they had one on either side. Stupidly though the little guy came to my side so I just ran at him flat out. He predictably stepped aside & I kept runnning up along the road. They gave chase once again but this time started hurling rocks at me but thankfully they either missed or hit my poor old backpack. It was nearly 3km in all before they finally stopped running - 4km before I stopped. I'd walked 30km already so having to run 4km stop-start made my legs turn to jelly. I was longing for a shower, some food & a bed. I was shown to a hostel by friendly gentleman upon arriving in Stovbcy but my dinner didn't last long. I was sitting on my bed eating when a knock came at the door. It was the hostel's receptionist with a man dressed in a three-piece suit & carrying a brief-case. She said something to me but I have no idea what. I simply thought he was occupying the other bed so I just let him in. I sat down on my bed to resume eating but he sat down in the rooms only chair & began firing questions at me. I looked at him with my fork half raised to my mouth & thought, "Damn it, he's not here for the bed." I quickly explained that I didn't speak the language & he was a little frustrated at that. I put my food down & brought out my documents. He asked for my passport & began to write down from it all possible information. He then asked to see my documentation, itinerary, insurence, purpose for being here etc. It was a tad intimidating. Then he began to write down addresses of people who I've met along the journey & kept a note of in my little book. Even though he was intimidating I hadn't seen any i.d. & had no idea who he was so thought it best to check that he was someone official. I asked if he had identification. He looked at me & said, "Yes" & continued writing. I really should have just left it at that but I pressed & asked to see it as I with-drew my little book. That ticked him off incredibly & very reluctantly & with a very mean scowl on his face he pulled out his Belarus Army identification. It sounds dumb that I'd do that, but in the situation, I had no idea who this fellow was & he was acquiring personal information (he'd also asked a lot of questions about the members of my family). He was effectivly the Belarus equivalent of the old KGB. I handed back my book & co-operated with him fully (which I had done to that point anyway). After a nerve racking 30mins he handed all my personal belongings back, packed up his brief-case, smiled for a tenth of a second, thanked me & left. As he was leaving I asked him if everything was ok. He simply replied, "Yes", & that was that. I looked back over at my cold dinner, but I didn't have much of an appetite by then. The next day started late (bad sleep - I don't fit in the beds here) & ended up walking 2 days in 1. There was nothing at the end of the scheduled 1st days walk so I pressed on into the night to arrive in Baranavichy at 11:30pm. It was around 59km & my archilles tendon felt like it was about to explode. Mind you, I aggrivated it the most whilst doing a one man congo-line down a pitch-black, deserted country road. Yes, I was trying to keep myself entertained, it was a long walk. So anyway, I arrived in Baranavichy, got a good nights sleep & woke to a view from my 6th storey room; the army was on display in the city centre. They were lined up in their divisions & marching just like you see on the old Russian documentaries. I didn't hang around for long. That day I was heading into nowhere with no idea of how the day would end because the next town was 73km away. It was nearly 10am before I hit the road after calling into a few churches as I left town it really wasn't going to be a big day of walking. More than likely I would walk until sundown & thumb a lift in either direction, sleep & then return in the morning. However, once out on road P2 I discovered that there was one almighty straight road, an expanse of forest & no civilisation what-so-ever. I car would go past about every 20mins so I knew that hitching aride at the end of the day was going to be difficult. Then I discovered that I had once again left something behind, except this time it was my head-lamp. I had no torch. I have no idea where it is but it's presumably somewhere in Baranvichy. My back-pack has a few broken zips & holes so it managed to escape at some point. As the sun began to set I began to try a thumb a ride but after 2hours & 5 cars I was still walking. The sky was clouded over so without a torch it was about as dark as the night can get. I couldn't see the edge of the road, I couldn't even read road signs when they were right in front of me. The one thing I did have was my camera, which has night vision on it (good for about 5m) so I was able to use it to correct my path or find signs at intersections. My mind was flashing back to Venezuela when I came across a Pume at night time. Their are no Puma's here, but the forests are full of wolves, brown bears & I'm told Bison as well. I prayed quite a lot & sang to warn anything I couldn't see (which was everything) that I was coming through. I prayed for a little bit of comfort as I walked & then around 2min later, there was a huge clearing through the forest & 1km away at the other end was the M1 freeway with cars in abundance. I kept singing loudly & used the night vision on my camera to make my way through & up onto the freeway. It was a massive dose of comfort to have the car headlights flashing past every few seconds & I continued on down the road, not even contemplating trying to get a ride. I still wasn't sure where I'd end up but I simply kept walking & kept praying. In the end, at 3am, I finished off the 73km to the town I'm in now, which I'd love to tell you what it's called, but I can't pronounce it & so don't know how to translate it. The final 20km last night was painful. I had to stop about every 500m to rest my back & hip joints so it was slow-going. I've shouted myself a rest day today (well, considering I didn't get to bed until 3:30am it would have been a short day anyway) & I'm enjoying a day of recovery on this, my 29th birthday. I'll hopefully see you from Poland next week. God bless & pelase pray for the unity of Christians, Sam.
"ay your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant." PS 119:76
ps: Thank you to everyone who has sent me a birthday greeting and/or condolances for the passing of 'Mumma'. It's brought a smile to my face!

Drunken Assault, Goodbye Russia & no Snow

2008-02-05T02:15:00.000-08:00

Hello from Minsk, the capital of the Republic of Belarus. I'm taking my 1st rest day today since leaving Moscow 17days ago & I am really in need of it! I crossed the Russian/Belarus border last Wednesday but not before having a rather unfriendly farewell from two men who thought it would be a good idea to try a belt me up & take my backpack. It was a bizare set of circumstances. As I approached an interchange on the highway I could see another guy with a backpack in a 'Rumble in the Jungle' fist fight with a guy dressed in black. I couldn't believe how severe there punches were & that they were both still standing. The fight quickly broke up, the guy in black retreating back up the highway exit & the guy with the backpack running up the other side of the highway past me while trying to thumb a ride. I yelled out across the highway asking if he was ok & he half acknowledged me but kept moving. As I walked past the exit I looked up & there was the guy in black, running back down with a mate by his side. They locked on me & increased there pace. I knew they had the wrong guy but how to tell them! They stopped at the highway because of traffic & as they looked up the road noticed the other fellow with a backpack & they were visibly confused. They had a quick discussion & then must have decided that I was closer & thus a better target because they promptly ran across the highway to me. I kept walking as they fired a few questions at me. I didn't understand a single word they said & explained that I didn't speak Russian. I had both walking poles in my left hand with one strap firmly around my wrist. After a quick discussion & it looking like they weren't going to be any trouble at all the 2nd fellow made a sudden lunge at my poles & tried to reef them from me while the 1st bloke scruffed my backpack. It was on. I couldn't let go of the poles very easily because of the strap around my wrist but I certainly wasn't trying to hand them over either. I pushed the 1st guy away with my right hand & with my hand around his neck held him at arms length for a short time. Eventually he twisted in closer & grabbed hold of my backpack chest strap, ripping it clean off. At that point I got a huge wif of alcohol & realised they were heavily intoxicated. There were fists & boots flying everywhere but incredibly not one landed on me. I'm not quite sure how it happened but somehow, at one point, I ended up with the 1st guy in head-lock & the 2nd guy pinned to the ground under my foot at the same time. He still had hold of the walking poles though & eventually they gave way, breaking at the middle join. The force of the poles coming apart sent me flying back down the road a few metres in the direction I wanted to head so without a moments hesitation I brought my strength into play & ran. It appears that a 12kg backpack is less of a hinderance than a litre of vodka because I was able to out run the guy giving chase. A 3rd guy then came into play (bottle in hand) as he ran down the highway exit. I didn't hang around & as painful as it was to run with my strained archilles tendon & stiff knee I reckon I put in a pretty solid 400m before eventually feeling a little asthmatic! I was concerned that they may come back after me (do something stupid like jump in a car) so I was really on edge as I hastily made my way up along the highway through thick snow-covered forest. I was still holding the walking pole handles & realised that blood was dripping down along them. The webbing between my thumb & fore-finger had been torn & blood was running down across the Canadian smiley-face stickers I put on there at Christmas. What played on my mind a lot at that point & right through to today is that at that very moment I was meditating & praying on the passion of Christ, in particular, his silence before his oppressors. There was a point during the fight where I had both men at arms length (that's called multi tasking I think) & I was thinking, "This is not what Jesus did!" I realised that I may have the strength to fend off two men but I don't have the strength to be silent under persecusion. "Lead us not into temptation" means a whole lot more now. It was around 2hours worth of shoulder checking & quick walking before I finally reached any form of civilisation, a petrol station. While I was about 200m off from it a bus drove past me & in the front seat was the 1st young man in black. He was staring at me as the bus went past & then the indicator came on for the bus to make a stop. I put my head down & started running for the service station, hoping to make it there before he made it to me. As I approached the entry I was dismayed to find that it was under construction & not yet open! I looked up & watched the man in black step off the bus. He looked at me & then walked off down a dirt track. I looked again, it wasn't him at all! Then on the other side of the road 3 men walked out from the forest, all dressed in black & staring at me, again, I thought I was them & I started to run for the bus but as i did they sat down on the other side & cracked open a drinking thermos. It was like a horror movie! Everyone looked the same & there was no safe place. They were all wearing the same black clothes & had similar haircuts. Up close it was easy to tell people apart but from a distance it was a different story. I eventually gained a little composure & with some prayer, walked on down the highway. That evening I slept at a truck stop in the truckies hostel & found that I had lost the ability to move my left hand. It had the pole strap around it & all the pulling & heaving on it had, I think, sprained it. I couldn't even undo my shoe laces. The next day, with a gimpy ankle, knee & wrist & minus walking poles I hobbled across the border into Belarus. I was at a lose as to where to go (it wasn't as neatly set up as other borders) but thankfully Gabriel was standing there, a Polish man I met last week at a hotel. "You made it!" He was a welcome point of familiarity. He's a truck driver & was on his way back home. He found all the information I needed & got me on my way with his address in my pocket for when I pass his place in 2weeks time. Belarus has a been, unexpectedly, a very different story to Russia. Belarus is the last remaining dictatorship in Europe & very anti-western in their policies, however, that sentiment has not, in any way, filtered through to the people. Of all the non-english speaking countries, the Belarussians are the most patient & helpful people I've met. I've been blown away with their generosity & willingness to at least try & communicate with me. While walking down a back street in Barysav I came across a mother & her two daughters trying to get their cat down out of an oak tree. One of the daughters was up a rickety old ladder reaching out precariously trying to grab the scared tabby. After a few minutes with no success the mother asked me if I could have a go. So up I went, mum holding the ladder firm on the iced footpath, and I introduced myself to the cat. It took a few minutes to gain its trust but eventually I was able to reach out & pick it up & as soon as it was close enough it dug its claws into my shoulder & sat there quite happily. Once we reached the bottom it was very quick to run back inside the yard & hide under the gate. The mother then sent the two girls off with me to show me the way to the towns hostel. They happily showed the way through the town & wished the best in the limited english they had. The people here are very genuine. I'm pleased to report that the weather is making a few turns for the better. After two days of rain (not snow) I enjoyed two days of sunshine & watched the snow all but disappear. The countryside is looking green & ready to burst into spring. I haven't come across many chruches this past week & so most of the invitations to pray for unity have come through the everyday meeting of the people here. The walking has been tough & the loss of the walking poles has added a new pressure to my feet. My knee has seized up a few times again & I usually have to physically hold my leg & bend it into action again. It's pretty painful. I'm looking forward to a few more rest days :-) I was thinking that everthing I used to protect myself against the Puma in Venezuela has now been stolen. The torch was nabbed in Costa Rica during the mugging & now the poles are gone & the chest strap had built into it the high-pitch whistle that I also used. So I hope I don't come across any more big fury animals because I'm running low on defenses. I do still have that one lonely glove (see last weeks blog about the whereabouts of the other) so perhaps I can use it if I come across a brown bear of a wolf. I could present the glove, slap it around the face & declare, "I challenge thee to a dual!" It'd be funny, but I just may get myself mauled doing that. I'm staying with Dan & Rose Waterman here in Minsk (thanks for the contact Heather & Ernest!). They are originally from Canada & are english teachers here at the Minsk International School, where I'm headed off to right now to meet the 30-odd students. I'll hopefully be in contact again next week, so until then, God bless & peace be with you. Sam.
"If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic." Luke 6:29

The Longest Yard

2008-01-27T01:06:00.000-08:00

Hello from Jarcevo in far western Russia! It's been an enormous week since the last entry & in many ways possibly the toughest I've had. There were times when I was within an inch of yelling up to heaven, "C'mon! A little help please!" but time after time found myself instead taking a few deap breathes, peering out through watery eyes & saying softly, "I trust you Lord." I left Moscow well before dawn & walked out under the gaze of hundreds of years of history. The city is alive. Dazling lights lit up every street block & the mix of history & modern life was like no othr city I've ever seen. I made one wrong turn but made my way out onto the open freeway (the M1) with a skip in my step & a tune on my lips. By mid afternoon that skip had turned into a limp & the tune was more of hum. The time off over Christmas & then the siberian crossing had sapped more fitness from me than I'd accounted for & my body was beginning to pack it in. There was no snow within Moscow at all so the going was pretty good. Even so, my left archilles tendon became strained & my right knee began to ache. I was a hobbling mess by the end of the 1st day & wondering what on earth I was supposed to do with the rest of the journey. I eventually found a small motel to stay the night at & they gave me my sheets & sent me off to my room. I could hardly move so even making my bed was a chore (actually it is when I can move freely anyway). I think my body had began to go into shock from the 49km I'd pushed through because my temperature was going up & down & I felt horrible. To my dismay, there was no hot water left in the motel so my shower lasted about 2.5seconds. I then threw my socks & undies in the sink to do my nightly washing but when I turned the tap on out spewed the foulest orange/brown water that immediately stained everything it touched. Now, I don't particularly wish to disclose the colour of my underwear (they're white) but the orange/brown stains weren't a good combination. "Oh that's just brilliant" I thought. There's was nothing more I could do so I just went to bed. The next day I walked 22km to a small town where the Germans had been haulted by inclement weather in WWII as they tried to take Russia. A lot of the remnants of war where still in sight & I was told that the young soldiers training in the area still find rifles, bombs & clothing out in the forest. There was a small church there as well but the reception there was as warm as the weather. The priest couldn't have cared less & simply walked away form me without any acknowledement. I limped off to find a motel & after a few wrong directions form locals & lovely lady by the name of Victoria offered to show me to the door of a hotel. It was a short bus ride & then a 10min walk so I wouldn't have found it without her help. She asked a for a room on my behalf but the receptionist simply yelled through a small window, "We're full!" & slammed the window door shut. I couldn't believe the rudeness but Victoria didn't seem to bat and eye lid. She just keept talking & eventually the lady on the other side yelled something back which was apparently the address of another place I could stay at. As we walked away, Victoria commented that she & her husband holidayed in Spain & that the hotels were a lot more friendly there. I added that any country in the world is more friendly than 'that'. The next motel was also full but a young soldier there pointed me to a 3rd place so I hobbled off once again. I found a room there but my leg had become so bad that one knee seized up almost completly. I could only bend it about 5degrees before it locked. I still had to find dinner so I used my walking pole as a walking stick & with an old-man 'swing-of-the-stiff-leg' hobble ventured out once again. The next day as I left the infamous war town, the weather, once again, turned inclement. The snow was flying in sideways & the roads were covered. With a strained archilles & a seized knee trying to walk through snow was, to say the least, difficult. Around 3hrs into the day I had that sinking feeling that I'd left something behind. It was my socks & undies - they were hanging up on the hot water pipe drying. And wouldn't you know it, it was my brand new pair of socks & NOT the stained undies. It was too far to go back so I had to get used to the idea of now having only 2 pairs of socks & one & half sets of underwear. By nightfall I was still some way off my destination as my pace was, well, let's say a little old lady with a hunch managed to overtake me at one point; it was slow. The town's folk in Mozajsk were more friendly than the last place & whisked me off to a motel. In the process though I realised that for some reason I was only wearing one glove & the other one was no wear to be seen! I'd taken it off to grab something out of my bag & I guess the glove is where I put it down. I carry 3 pairs of gloves because of the extreme temperatures so I can get by without that pair but they were favorite. I still haven't thrown the other glove out yet. Anyone need one glove? Michael Jackson only wears one, maybe we can do a deal? I didn't have enough money for the room at the motel so I had to duck across the srteet to an ATM. As I was returning I jumped up off the street into the snow but misjudged how much snow there actually was & badly strained the other Archilles tendon! The pain was agonising & I was left standing on one leg on the side. I contorted my face in ever colourful manner but managed to keep my mouth shut. The pain eventually subsided & I double-limped back up to my room & collapsed on my bed. The next day was a slow, 'not much to write about' day. Long & slow with both ankles struggling in the snow & now both knees struggling to warm up & enjoy full movement. I had a strong sense at that time to call home & let my family know I was ok (or so I thought) but I couldn't find a phone or internet so it had to wait. After nearly a week on the road I still hadn't been invited to step foot inside someones home but a truck driver from Belarus called me up into his cab as I walked past & invited me to share lunch with him. His name was Vitali & he was a gem of a bloke. He lives in Brest in western Belarus & has invited me to come & have dinner with him & his family as I pass through in few weeks time. His Volvo truck made for a comfortable lunch stop. A few days later I stayed in a town called Gargarin & I was shown to a motel by a beautiful girl called Julia. She spoke English well & chatted the whole way there. At the motel the receptionist couldn't fill out the appropriate government forms because it made no allowence for non-Russian customers. Hence, Julia offered her details & so for one night, I was officially 'Julia.' You'll be pleased to know that I've reverted back to Sam again. The next morning I stopped into a pertol station to pick up my day's supply of food (it's really difficult here to find healthy food for the road - muslie bars & fresh fruit are non-existant) & then hit the road. After a few hours of walking & some time of prayer I reached for something to eat & was absolutly livered to discover that I had left all my food sitting on the counter at the petrol station! It was too much. I forget things every now & then but all of this one after the other was beating me into a pulp. I was hungry, I was annoyed, I was sore & I was tired. I sarcastically noted to myself, "If at first you don't succeed, don't get too hung up about it because you're probably going to stuff again pretty soon!" But the sarcasm soon gave way to reality & I found myself thinking more along the lines of, "If at first you don't succeed remember that it's got not nothing to do with success." I kept trying to find internet access or a telephone to call home but nothing was ever open or working so I had to push on. On Thursday I had the worst case scenario pop up. I was walking slower & slower & hence finishing my days later & beginning the next day later & so it began to snow-ball. Thursday saw me walking to a town where there was no gaurentee of any accomodation & as it was, I arrived at 10pm to nothing more than a service station. There was no where to pitch my tent (a foot of snow everywhere), the buses had stopped running & non of the locals, as friendly as they actually were, where offering me a place to bunk down for the night. Instead I had to walk on towards Safonovo, a 72km walk from my starting point. My left knee had seized up again so I had to make a pit stop in the snow & very gingerly kneel down to apply some cool pain relief. While down there I took the oppurtunity to ask God for some help, but ultimately for his will to be down. I was very thankful that within a few mintues of starting up again my knee un-seized & I was able to pick the pace up. I arrived at Safonovo at a staggering 4:15am. I was given a very cheap room & fell into bed around 4:30am. Just to add to my frustration though, my body was in so much pain that I couldn't sleep. My feet felt as though there was nothing but open flesh (they were atually all in tact) & my hips felt like I had nails being driven into them. By 10am I still hadn't been able to sleep so I got up, had a shower & some breakfast, pulled my boots on & walked into town to find internet or a phone. Once again though, nothing. I walked to the other side of town, checked into a motel & this time slept for about 12hours straight. Last night, after a short 22km walk, I arrived in Jarcevo. I could see a church spire through some pine trees a good kilometre or two off the highway so I wandered down through the forest & eventually found it. I was so happy to at last be welcomed into a home. The priest here, Father Vasil & his family welcomed me with open arms & fed me more in 12hrs than I think I've had for teh whole week. I attended night prayers with them last night & then Sunday Mass this morning & have enjoyed their company. Last night though I was finally able to contact home via email but as I logged into my hotmail account I was met with a progression of emails detailing the health of my nan (mumma), her deteriation & then finally, one asking me to call home immediately because she had passed away. Mumma was buried yesterday & I was able to speak to my family this morning. This week has, for many reasons, most certainly been the longest yard of this jounrey so far. My body is healing slowly & I feel physically better today than of any day since leaving Moscow. The prayer continues & the invitation to join in praying for unity is ceaseless. I hope to be writing about all the pretty flowers & butterflies that I encoutner in next weeks blog & perhaps the bucket of bleach I was able to plunge my undies into. Until then though, may His will be done! God bless, Sam.
"We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body." 2Cor 4:10

The Trans Siberian & Mother Russia

2008-01-16T08:52:00.000-08:00

From Moscow, Russia, a very big hello & welcome back! I'm only a stone-throw from the infamous Kremlin in downtown Moscow on a mild winter's night. I'm now roughly 9,200km from Vladivostok, where Justin & I began our trans-siberian trek 7days ago. We were already behind schedule because of the passport fiasco but we were set back even further when our train was cancelled & we were forced to catch a slower second train the following day that was scheduled to arrive in Moscow today (the 16th), which also happened to be the day Justin was scheduled to fly back home. All of a sudden our plans for making a few stops along the world's longest continuous railway in order to visit the local churches & take in a few snippets of Siberian life were dashed. It would instead be a non-stop, 7day train ride. Each carriage on the train has 9 cabins with two double bunks in each & each carriage is looked after for the entire trip by a worker called "The Provinitser". As we approached the train Justin commented that, especially because of the language barrier, we should get on the good side of the Provinitser to make the journey a little easier. As we walked along the platform to our carriage we saw a lady knock on her carriage's door & the provinitser opened up for her, so when we arrived at our carriage we did exactly the same thing. In hind sight Justin & I think that the lady a few carriages up was a perhaps worker for the trains because when our Provinitser came to the door she didn't open it, instead, she opened her mouth with the most severe Russian tyrade the human race has ever encountered (possibly). We didn't understand a single word she blasted out, but we got the point. She disappeared back inside & Justo & I simply stood outside the train in silence, staring at our reflection in the door, trying to make sense of our failed relationship with the Provinitser. Eventually the door did open up &, along with a few gathered patrons, we boarded our home for the next week. The Provinitser was about 5ft tall & she didn't crack a smile the whole afternoon. Late in the evening we'd made a stop at a small secluded town & as I made my way up to the carriage's hot water urn I noticed the Provinitser struggling at the door with a new passenger's over-sized travel case. It was a divine appointment as I was able to carry the luggage to the cabin & although the Provinitser didn't say thankyou she at least smiled at us about 3 hours later. The trip was long. And Russia in winter is pretty similar even over 9000km worth of track - icy, cold & white. Justin & I were joined in our cabin by Alexi & Angela, a father a daughter who were travelling back to their home town just outside Moscow. They didn't speak any english & we didn't speak russian so it made for some animated conversations using mime & pictionary. They were beautiful cabin mates & when the conversation became too difficult to maintain we'd simply resort to sharing food with one another. The Russian towns along the journey provided the only interludes of change as we passed through townships settled by Europeans or Mongolians or even Tatars. The architecture was dazzlingly simply. Does that make sense? Basically, it was really basic, but so interesting. Some towns looked like fairy tale versions of the north pole; small wooden houses camped side by side with pencil-columns of smoke rising from every chimney. The most intersting part of the whole trip had to be the time when the train screeched to a hault sending my water bottles & books flying off the cabins table onto my head as I rested on my bed. We were in the middle of Russian wilderness (east of Siberia) & word was spreading quickly that we may have just hit a man. We were all pearing out our windows & wouldn't you know it, there he was, lying in the snow outside our carriage. He was yelling something & moaning a lot but thankfully we soon realised that he hadn't been hit but instead, was heavily intoxicated. He had apparently tried to wave the train down from the middle of the tracks but managed to just staggered aside before being mowed down. He could see us looking out at him so he picked up a rock & hurled it at the window. The rock bounced off but he had thus earnt himself a meeting with one of the trains engineers who appeared on the scene carrying a hammer. I was a little concerned about what the hammer was going to be used for but after a quick conversation with the intoxicated gentleman, the only thing that was used was his boot. The engineer karate-kicked the drunk man in the chest & then gave him a quick royal boot up the backside & drove him away form the tracks. The last we saw of him he was stumbling his way back up into the forest towards a smouldering campfire. The engineer boarded the train & we started off down the track again. We said a quick prayer for him but there really wasn't much else for us to do. We really were like fish in a bowl, couped up in our carriage for whole week. There were no showers, just a cramped, smelly toilet with poor water flow from the tap. The only space away from our cabin was the space seperating the carriage from the linkage with the following carriage. Justin & I nicknamed it the 'meat-locker' as it generally stayed at the same temperature as the frozen wilderness outside. And for two days in a row, that was -39degC. I ventured out there a few times to do a few sets of push-ups but for the most part it was the smokers closet so between lung-freezing air & cancer-causing smoke I had to pick my time out there carefully. Justin & I also went very close to losing all our gear when we jumped off the train at Omsk, walked forward 8 carriages to the dining cart & re-boarded. We sat down for a meal & upon finishing up, made our way back through the now moving train. Back in our carriage, all mayham had broken loose when the train started up again because the other passengers (whom we'd all meet & begun to know well by this stage) had noticed us leaving the train but not getting back on. They had all been a little up-set that we'd been left behind but the end conclusion was that they'd turf our gear out at the next station. When we walked through the final 'meat-locker' into our carriage we were suprised to be met by a bizzare mixture of confused faces, arms in the air, smiles, laughter & a bit of a stern word from the Provinitser followed by a smile. We were very thankful for having arrived back from dinner before the next stop! That was our 2nd trip to the dining cart. On the 1st trip we'd met Nicholie, who sat down beside Justin, put his arm around him & declared that us Australians were beautiful. I think he was a smart man, but I think it freaked Justin out some what :-) Needless to say, we didn't venture back there for quite a few days, opting instead to eat from teh comfort of our cabin with Alexi & Angela. It was pretty rough trying to sleep in the cabins. The beds were small & the track was bumpy & loud. We also travelled through 7 time zones, which threw us out a bit as well. When I noticed that the sun was rising at 2pm I decided it was time to play with my watch. I thouroughly enjoyed my time with Justin as we prayed, ate, laughed & absorbed some russian culture together but all things must come to an end & Justo is currently on a flight back home to Perth in West Australia. Justin caught a cab from the Moscow train station (it was actually a bit sad saying goodbye to the other passengers form our cabin as well!) & I walked off down the busstling Moscow street into a settling snow shower. I made my way to the hostel I'm now in via Red Square, surrounded by the imposing Kremlin, the stunning St Basil's Cathedral &, in somewhat a sign of the times, an outdoor ice-rink opposite Lenin's tomb. I think the Russian figure skaters may have been training there. I was filming a bit & happened to focus in on one bloke who was gathering speed around the outside. He then launched into a triple-axle & nailed the landing. "Wow", I thought, "who are you?" His efforts gained some applause from the crowd some I'm just assuming he's famous. Does anyone out there follow figure skating? I'll send you the footage... From here I head south-west towards Belarus & Poland. Time is once again against me with the Russian visa requirements being very strict so I will need to get my skates on. All the best for the rest of the week & I'll try to write again on Sunday week. God bless, Sam.
"Jesus replied, "Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come."" Mark 1:38
ps: It's the International Week of Prayer for Christian Unity!! As a great "something we can do" please check out www.onedate.org to help along the process for Chrisitan unity & as always pray, pray away!

A funny thing happened on the way to Vladivostok

2008-01-07T00:33:00.001-08:00

At the start of this week I & the Quist family said goodbye to my younger brother, Chris, who flew back to a very warm Australia after enduring a very chilly Canada. Chris headed home with a suprise for his girlfriend, a beard, & I set about planning the final aspects of the Russian leg of the journey before heading off. When I arrived in Edmonton 2 weeks ago I had to send my passport off to Passports Plus (a visa issuing company) to have my Belarus Visa completed. Due to the up-coming holidays at that stage of the year as well as the short time that I was to stay in Edmonton, I had payed extra to have the passport processed in 24hrs & returned to me straight after Christmas. My passport though, didn't turn up as agreed & Passports Plus were closed for the Christmas break. I was scheduled to leave Edmonton on the 2nd of January, which was also the first day Passports Plus were to be open after the return date of December 31st came & went. I made contact with them early in the morning to discover that they had forgotten to place the passport on the 24hr turn-around list & so it was sitting in Washington DC & not likely to be returned for another week. The lady on the other end of the phone believed that I hadn't given them authorisation for the 24hr processing option but after I reminded her that our enitre conversation the week before was about me not wanting to send it back to them to have the Visa completed because of a lack of time & that she had said that she could rush it through for me on 24hr processing & have it back to me well before I left, she finally agreed to do all that she could to get me my passport. Unfortunatly we then discovered that the Belarus embassy was closed & so the absolute earliest I could receive my passport by would be the 4th, unless I wanted to pay $1100 & I could have it on the 3rd. Either way, I wasn't going to make my flight. I opted for the 4th of January, forgot about the missed flight & simply set about changing my itinerary. I couldn't change all of the 3 flights to Vladivostok & so had to purchase some from scratch, costing me another $870 on top of the original cost of the flights. Through the help of Epay Lara at Glades Travel in Sydney I managed to get a new flight departing on Saturday morning at 6am. I would arrive in Vladivostok after the Trans Siberian train had left & would have to wait for the Tuesday train, forcing me to make a direct path to Moscow on the train without any stops (6days worth). I was a little concerned on the Friday when my passport hadn't arrived by lunchtime & then even more so when I couldn't contact anyone at Passports Plus. It wasn't looking good & though it hadn't really bothered me too much in losing the first flight (& valuable funds), the thought of losing another flight & potentially any chance of having enough funds to finish this journey was beginning to wear on me. There were a lot of prayers being said & by 4pm I needed to get out & just go for a walk. The passport was nowhere to be seen & as I walked up along the snowy country road, every car that came into view made my hopes rise for a split second as I thought it just may be the delivery, but it never came. I just walked & prayed. I prayed for the passport to come, but mainly for God's will. If it didn't come, then it had better be a part of His plan in all this! At around 4:30pm I arrived back at the house & rang Fedex. Passports Plus hadn't given me a tracking number so I had no access to it but after explaining the circumstances & handing over all me personal details the lady on the other end gave me the tracking number & confirmed that it was in fact in Edmonton. She then though told me that it wouldn't be delivered until Monday because the address I'd given her wasn't a correct mailing address. That sent all of us into a spin as we tried to find out what the 'correct mailing address' was. Eventually we discovered that the rural address I'd given them was in fact the correct mailing address & that there was no other means by which to mail to the farm. I then contacted the local Fedex branch to ask where the parcel was so that I could pick it up myself & I was told that they'd call me back once they'd tracked it down. Half an hour later the phone rang & Fedex informed me that the package had accidently been sent to Fort Saskatchewen, a neighbouring town, & that it wouldn't be available until Monday. I asked calmly if I could please go & pick it up & she told me that that was fine, & I could meet the driver at the depot at 5:30pm. So, with my bag packed & my hair still not grey we all piled into the Quist's van & made the pilgrimage to the Fedex depot. The package wasn't there when we arrived, so we sat in the van & prayed. At 5:45 the driver turned up & thankfully, there was the package & inside was my passport (& a bill for over $500 from Passports Plus). I was so relieved to finally have the passport in my hands & right at the 11th hour; my bus to Calgary airport was leaving in one hour. We drove into the city, picked up my bus ticket & then sat in a cafe for half an hour with a very satisfying warm drink. Thank you so much to the Quist family, for all of your hospitality & support, your warmth & humour & in particular your generosity of faith. And thank you to Colin & Laura (across the farm road) for letting Chris & I stay in your basement! At 7pm I was on the bus & heading south for he 3hr trip to Calgary. I arrived at 10:30pm, bought some food, walked for one & a half hours to the airport, called a few people back home to let them know that I was finally on my way & then checked in at 4am. I didn't sleep that night & on the 4hr flight to San Fancisco I didn't sleep either. I had 2hrs in San Francisco before boarding my Korean Air flight to Seoul in South Korea. I was fascinated by the touch screen interactive system mounted on the back of every single seat on the plane & it had everything like movies, documentaries, music, games & even Blackjack if I really got bored. We took off at 1:20pm & I still hadn't slept. To my frustration, airline seats aren't built for people my height & I simply couldn't get to sleep. The back of the chairs finish at my shoulders & my knees were already hitting the seat in front of me so I wasn't able to slide down. I tried sliding my feet under the seat & sliding down my chair to get more comfortable but there just wasn't enough room. I stayed awake for all but 20min of the enitre flight. Other than not sleeping for 36hours, the flight was unforgetable. The flight path took us north-west up over Alaska, across the Bering Strait & down across Kamatchaka peninsula in Russia. The incredible array of mountain peaks & ice was breath-taking. We followed the sun the whole way with it getting away from us a little as we headed up over Alaska but as we dipped back down along the Russian coastline the sun slowly rose over the south-western horizon again & pretty much stayed there for the entire trip, setting as we landed in Seoul. The service onboard was fantastic & I was even more impressed at Seoul airport where I discovered that they place all transit passengers (I flew to Vladivostok the next morning) in the Hyatt Hotel & pay for all meals. Not bad at all. I've always wondered what the Hyatt looked like on the inside :-) I got one of the best nights sleeps I've had in a long time. This morning as I entered the airport I amazingly discovered that I'd been carrying a 3inch nail in my wallet since leaving Calgary Airport (long story) so once I'd inconspicuously tossed it in the bin I boared my flight & made the short hop across the Sea of Okotsk to Vladivostok. A good friend of mine, Justin Carrick, decided to join me for the Trans Siberian Railway so he has been caught up in all the passport mayham but is now thus aquainted with this diverse city. He has been sitting here for four days by himself, practising his Russian on the receptionist & taxi drivers & discovering snow for the first time in his life (he's from Perth). Both of us had very similar experiences coming into Vladivostok; firstly we saw the decommissioned aircraft sitting along the side of the runway, followed by an enourmous smoke stack (perhaps for burning decommissioned planes?) & then the Russian soldiers on the tarmac. And believe it or not, the movies are all correct!! Half of the soldiers, all in their bushy black head attire, were women with long blonde hair! And I'd always thought that Hollywood was so pathetic with its casting. Both Justin & I also discovered on our taxi rides into Vladivostok that keeping a safe distance while driving is not efficient & thus unheard of. I also saw 3 minor bigles on the trip from the airport to the hotel - Not so efficient now. This evening Justin & I walked down to the Bay of Vladivostok... & then walked out across it. I pointed the camera at Justo & asked him to explain what the main dangers were in walking across a frozen sea but before he could answer I tripped over a chunk of ice & strained to keep upright. So, it turns out that the first danger of walking across a frozen sea is trying to film someone & not watching were you're going. So, at long last, I can very happily say, "Hello from wintery Vladivostok!" Next week we hope to be in Moscow, but the journey continues here & now. Please pray for us & in particular, for the unity of all Christians, in truth & in love. Peace be with ya, Samuel & Justin (or in Russian, Самуэль и Джастин).
"When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul." Psalm 94:19

Old boots, Snow & Down-Hill Speeding

2007-12-30T17:21:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas folks! How was your day? I had a fun day experiencing a very different Canadian Christmas with the Quist, Lefsurd & Landers families on a mild, snow-covered day. Chris & I began by teaching a few willing participants the traditional Autralian past-time of playing back-yard cricket on Christmas day but the game came to a sudden holt when Paul Quist lost control of the bat (a plank of wood) and cracked his brother in law on the head, splitting the bat in two. Jeff's head was fine, but the bat was stuffed. Time to play by Canadian rules. We sang carols around the piano as grandma played & later played a fast paced game that pretty much involved a lot of shouting & not much else. Late in the evening the younger ones (me included) made our way down to a small hill with a large sled & spent a few hours sliding on our butts. We could fit 4 people on the sled at a time so we were able to pick up some decent momentum on the way down. We crashed regularly. I'd like to thank Jon & Will who broke my fall on the two occaisions I got air-born. They made for great landing pads while still slidding down hill. That evening I had my first oppurtunity to drive a car in over 12months. It was a 30min drive at night with snow on the road, the steering wheel on the wrong side of the car & all the drivers driving on the wrong side of the road. Somehow we all made it back home in one piece. A few days later I was back in the car as Jon, Chris & I took a 4hour drive out to Jasper National Park for 2 days of skiing. It was such an amazingly beautiful place with mountains soaring sharply around us & rivers rushing between sheets of ice down every valley. Coyotes, elk & big-horn sheep lined the road & the snow cover was just under 70cm. We skied at Marmot Basin & after a 2hr brush-up lesson, hit the mountain. On second thoughts, I should've had 4hrs of brush-up lessons. On my very first run I took off from the chair lift, missed my first turn as I hooked my inside ski in & corrected in a direct line down a rather steep slope that I would have preffered not to have attempted for at least another couple of hours. Chris reckons I topped around 50km/hr but I think it may have been a little quicker than that. With most people skiing in nice carving motions I whooshed straight down through everyone in a straight line for around 800m before finally gaining control again & managing to slow myself down with a sweeping carve. My heart was in my mouth as I finally pulled to a stop & looked back up at the mountain. Chris & Jon were still standing at the top, apparently with mouths wide open as they prepared my eulogy. With my little 'Sam moment' out of the way my guardian angels were able to relax a little over the rest of the two days as we all enjoyed the beautiful slopes. On the first night I somehow ended up with the very last run on the mountain. The slopes were completely empty as I hopped off the lift & it slowed to a stop. The view was incredible across the valley below & as the sun set behind me the only sound on the entire slope was that of my skis carving through the snow. It was a beautiful change from walking. It was priceless. Of course, when it was all over I still had to drive home again on the wrong side of the road. I was thankful to have an oppurtunity to get some physical exercise in as the resting has been irritating me a little. One night I was heading off to bed but instead rugged up & went for an 11pm jog out along the country road here. Then the next morning I roled out of bed into the push-up position & after a few minutes decided that I really needed to get out a little more. Skiing was a great antidote. I'm leaving for Vladivostok on Wednesday afternoon & it would appear that it will be without new boots. I'll be heading into Russia with my very worn Scarpas that I've been wearing since Nicaragua. The new pair didn't arrive & with no size 16 Scarpa boots in stock anywhere within a 40,000km radius I'm just going to have to push on with what I have. There is one pair of Scarpas in the world that I've been able to find & I happen to own them. Unfortunately they are sitting in Panama & not looking like moving for some time yet. I'm not too bothered by this & I'm kind of interested to see exactly how far these boots can carry me before they dismantle. I'm very ready to hit the road again & feeling rejuevenated & healthy after my time here with the Quists & all their friends & family. They are all exceptionally inspiring people! I'll miss driving around with Paul (Jon's dad) when his alarm flicks on at 4:01pm & he decalres, "Time to pray for Christian unity!" He'd then pull the car off to the side of the road & we'd pray. Now, as for next weeks blog entry, next Sunday I should be somewhere in central Siberia so there is a good chance that I may not be able to find interent access. I arrive in Moscow on the 15th of January so there should be an entry by then but it's most likely going to be hit & miss until that point. Let the black-out begin. God bless & I'll hopefully see you sometime again next week! Peace be with you, Sam.
"For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone." Ps 91:11-12 (or break your neck on a mountain while skiing...)

Rest & the 12 days of Christmas

2007-12-23T14:10:00.000-08:00

On the 370th day since beginning in Brazil & after 9444km on foot I finally arrived in Edmonton, Canada. This is the end of the road for the America's & an opputunity for me to take a short break before flying across the Bering Strait into Eastern Russia. The final day of walking began in Leduc after spending the night at the home of Shaun & Sandra Woodard. That final day was a 35km stroll down along the Queen Elizabeth II Highway in mild conditions to St Joseph's Basilica in downtown Edmonton. A few hours into the day I was met by a Global television newscrew who took an hour or so to take some footage & conduct an interview before I was ableto continue on. That was my only break for the day as I'd organised with some friends to meet them at Calgary Lutheran Church, 5km out from Edmonton central, in order to walk the final section with them and I was running short on time. I turned up at the church an hour late but we were ready to get underway again right on 4:01pm so we firstly went into the church & knelt at the communion rail before the sanctuary with the minister & his assistant joining us. We prayed for the unity of all Christians, in truth & in love, & then commenced the final 5km of this section of the walk. We entered the city as the sun set behind us. My friends, the Quist family, my brother Chris & I walked up onto the Basilica steps at right on 5pm & only a few seconds after the snow began to fall. Amidst the busy city centre it felt very peaceful & still as the snow fell & my walking finished (for now). We ventured inside & spent some time in prayer before filing into their van & scooting off through the evening traffic to their little country home. By 7pm we were back on the road though with a speaking engagement at the Holy Family Church in St Albert followed by a late night "sit up & talk" with Jon Quist & Chris. The next day the Global tv interview was on the news throughout the day but I suffered the rather funny humilation of having the midday news co-host comment after the story had aired, "What did he say? I couldn't understand a single word he said. Was he speaking english?" Thankfully the woman co-hosting with him understood "Australian" & interpretted for him. Many people have commented on the midday news segment since, feeling sorry for his comment but to be honest I think it's quite funny. I understood every word I said! Speaking of strange accents, I met a fellow from the Canadian island of New Foundland the other day & I couldn't understand a single word HE said. I asked a question to which he replied, "Aghda end u ul se," which means, "Yes, they're in aisle six." It took me three goes to figure it out. Anyway, I'm now enjoying a Christmas break & heading out for a quick ski at Jasper National Park on boxing day before flying out to Vladivostok on the 2nd of January. Januray 18th - 25th is the International Week of Prayer for Christian Unity so please start spreading the message & inviting people to pray, particularly during that week. 4:01 for a solid week! I hope everyone has a very merry & blessed Christmas & if you have the time there is a whole new set of Walk4one videos on youtube (Amazon to Venezuela) that will also be on the website soon (You'll get to see a lot of travelling on the back of semi-trailers, boats, motorbikes, etc in the Amazon jungle section). As I mentioned in the last blog entry it feels like I've been on the road for a lot longer than one year. From 47degC in Brazil to -33deC in Canada, from muggings to beautiful hospitality, it's been a big year. Thank you to everyone who has supported along the journey & may we all keep praying & moving forward towards complete unity. Now, because it's both Christmas & the end of a massive year on the road praying for unity I thought I'd finish off with a new rendition of a Christmas carol that summarises the past 370days! The 12 Days of Christmas as it will most likely never appear again... (to save time I think I'll only put up the final verse). Feel free to sing along!
On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me, 12 different countries, 11hundred phtotos, 10 pairs of socks, 9000 kilometres, 80 degrees of temperature, 7 hissing snakes, 600 blisters, Salmonela & Typhoid Fever, 4 thugs with knives, 3 room invasions, 2 men with guns and a Puma in the long grass!
God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"The virgin will be with child & will give birth to a son, & they will call him 'Immanuel' which means, "God with us." Matthew 1:23

Cheap Motel, a Mallamute & Coyote Chorus

2007-12-18T08:06:00.001-08:00

Hello! Sorry for the delay on this one! It's been difficult to keep to my schedule this week & I simply didn't have a chance to jump online for long enough. I'm now sitting up in a small town called Leduc, only 32km south of Edmonton. I have to be honest, the thought of being within 1day of a 2week rest is more than just exciting. I'm nearly jumping out of my skin anticipating a regular sleep pattern, regular meals, warmth & friends to chat with. This week gone has been a quiet one with my brother Chris exiting the walk back in Calgary after a 'failed' physiotherapy appointment. He was hurting badly & so checked in a for some physio but they discovered that he'd pushed his legs to the point of possibly having done nerve damage. The basic prognosis was "STOP WALKING!" So he did. He caught the bus to Edmonton & the Quist family (friends living in Edmonton) organised accomodation for him until my arrival. Thankyou! Before Chris departed though, we had the oppurtunity to attend a Ukranian Orthodox service (vespers) in the evening. The orthodox church was incredibly beautiful with the most inspiring art work & craftmanship throughout. Not long into evening prayers an elderly woman leaned over to us & asked if we could hold the candles for the priest. I leaned forward & replied that I wasn't Ukranian Orthodox & had no idea what to do. She simply smiled & told us that we'd be fine & in fact we may even enjoy it! I guess we didn't have a say in the matter. So up we went, one massive candle each, standing off to the side of the priest with two women holding candles on the other side. We had no idea what we were doing. And we were cooking! We hadn't at that stage taken our snow gear off & so fully clad it didn't take too long before we were sweating it out. With both hands firmly clasping the candle & standing right up the front there was no oppurtune moment to put it down & take off a few layers. It was the toughest candle hold either of us have ever had. We loved being there though & meeting everyone afterwards. It was such a beautiful place of prayer. The next day Chris's bus drove past me on the highway about 10km out of Calgary & I was once again by myself for the few hundred kilometres north. On the 2nd day out I stopped in a town called Carstairs & ducked into the town library to quickly send off some important emails. By the time I'd finished I'd been invited to have dinner with the Librarian, her assistant & her husbund. They picked me up from my motel later in the evening & we sat down to a fantastic meal. It was real, authentic hospitality that has typified this part of the world. Mind you, the next day I was steering away from the 'hospitality'! It's a little awkward, but the next day I walked into a small town after sunset & walked straight into a motel to grab a bed for the night. The woman at the front counter was a little over-welcoming in that she even shook my hand as she welcomed me. I thought it was a little odd but I really didn't question it. It was by far the cheapest place I'd stayed in for a long time. There was a bar & cafe attached to the motel so I shuffled into the cafe, ordered some dinner & sat in there all by myself eating dinner. The waitress offered to take my meal into the bar for me but I declined, sighting that the silence was nice. She then proceeded to flirt with me quite severly (can you flirt severly? For now you can, ok) & I was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. Behind me were two pokie machines (lottery machines) that would beep every now & then. The waitress apologised for them & said, "Sorry about that. We don't want them in here but we can't have them in the bar because the government won't let us have both the machines & the strippers in the same room." I nearly choked on my meal. *long pause* I think I eventually replied with something inteligent like, "Oh, ok." I now knew why it was so dirt cheap to get a room!!! I ate, I left for my room, I locked the door well, laughed, said my prayers & went to bed. Other than dodgy accomodation I had a difficult week with issues requiring my attention back home in Australia (& Panama) that I just didn't have the time to deal with. I'm still working through the insurence claim for the mugging in Costa Rica, sorting out my income tax back home in Australia, trying to get my boots that arrived in Panama 4months after I left mailed to Edmonton, sorting out a problem with the Belarus visa I forked out $200 for last month & then trying to find the time to put a blog up. The walking & mission are time consuming enough but with the extra duties it was beginning to weigh on me. I was going to bed tired & waking up a few hours after I'd started walking again. In the end I handed it all over to Lord (as I should have done from the outset) & kept walking & doing what I could in between (phone calls at lunch time, emails at the end of the day). I've slept well the last 2nights & it's starting to sort itself out thankfully. I had a huge day on the road two days ago though that caught me by suprise. I thought I was undertaking a 35km day but it was in fact 50km. I'd organised to meet with a newspaper reporter during the middle of the day (thinking that I only had a small day) & the interview went for 2hours, which made it very difficult to even get close to the destination by sunset. The sunrises here at around 8:30am & has set by 4:15pm so they are very short, cold days. I was walking through the chilly night for the final 20km & the road twisted it's way through forests of snow covered pines & rolling snow covered farming land lit up by the half-moon. I'd been praying for a while before I decided to sing my way down along the road. I was (as is normal) belting out "Where the streets have no name" by U2 when a pack of Coyotes, deep within the forest of pines, began to chime in with a chorus of howls & yelps. I stopped singing for a moment to offer them some advice (they were badly out of tune, really) & continued singing with a smile from ear to ear. They continued howling as well. It was a great little moment. Speaking of k-9's, I had another dog follow me down the road yesterday. A few dogs have followed so far on the trip & most have ended up underneath a semi-trailer & I wasn't keen for this fellow, a mallamute, to have the same ending. I took him back to his house but I couldn't get him to stay & no manner of scolding, throwing of snow or idol threats could make him stay so in the end I simply kept myself in between him & the road. He almost ended up under a car a few times but he was at least responding to my voice & I was able to call him out of harms way just in time. In the end we made it around 10km together until I came across a highway store where the owners were kind enough to take care of him until I'd left. They let him into the store (it was a furniture & gifts store) & were very happy to take care of him for the time being. I let them know where he'd come from & then said my farewells. I was relieved to have left him behind at last & that he'd made the distance without getting toppled. The funniest moment this week happened at a level train crossing as a farmer waited for a train to pass by. The trains here sit on the horn for miles & they just keep tooting! I've heard a lot of locals complain about the 'unnecessary' noise they make but this farmer took matters into his own hands. Everytime the train tooted he tooted back & so began a ruckess of noise, back & forth between the two drivers. His american pick-up had quite a horn on it so he wasn't being outdown by much at all. It was a simple moment but it captured me! I thought it was brilliant, I wish I'd thought of it & done it... Now, on a serious note, there's a great little comment from Alistair in the comments section for this week that I'd like to invite everyone to check out if you have the time. It's in regards to uniting the dates for Easter. It's a simple step towards unity but perhaps one of the most precious for us to tend to, so please check it out! Thanks for that Alistair. Tomorrow I'll be skipping my way into Edmonton as I scrape the ice off my beard on the last day of the America's leg of this trip. It's been a long time coming! Oh, & this week just gone was also the 1yr anniversary since I started walking in Brazil. It feels like 5yrs ago. God bless & peace be with you! Sam.
"I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me." Ps 13:6

The A&W, Senior Citizens & Christmas Carols

2007-12-11T11:26:00.000-08:00

We've made it to Calgary! And it's a lovely day, blue skies, no wind & a top of 0degC (that's good). Chris has struggled again this week with one injury piling on top of another so he's split his time up into a mixture of walking, riding in cars & sitting in coffee shops waiting for me to arrive. The week almost began on a sour note after a warm wind (called a Chinook) swept through Lethbridge the night before we left & melted the snow. No sooner had it began to melt the snow & it disappeared as the temperature droped again, now freezing the melted snow into solid slabs of ice. As Chris & I started off in the early morning freeze I slipped on a driveway & my feet shot forward sending me airborne. I crashed down backwards but thankfully landed flush on my backpack, which took the full brunt of my weight. I did sustain a sore neck from the whip-lash of my head coiling back over the back-pack but I was thankful to not be one of the 25people who were rushed to hospital that morning after similar falls (or so I read in the paper the next day). This past week was blessed with more speaking engagemnts than any preceeding it. I was invited to speak to a numebr of classes at the Catholic Central High in Lethbridge, then speak with both tv news crews in the small city as well as the local radio station. I also had an interview with the Lethbridge newspaper & incredibly the jornalist phoned ahead for me & organised for me to stay with his mother in the next town! I was very grateful. In the evening I headed off to the Youth Group that met at the High School (though they'd came from neighbouring towns & schools as well) & I had an oppurtunity to speak there. I was so impressed with how focussed this group was! They had a lot of fun & enjoyed each others company but at the same time they were so focussed on Christ & to put a finer point on it, couldn't stop talking about how good God is. They were alive to the max. the next day on the road I was blessed to have Stan & Kathy pull up alongside us with warm food & my socks & undies, which I'd left in their dryer. All day people were hitting their horns as they drove past & I thought it was starting to get to me, "Why are you tooting at us! We're not on the road!" At the end of the day we discovered that the local radio station was giving updates of our progress & inviting people to encourage us by tooting their horn. I would have prefered that they throw chocolate at me or something like that, but it was a great encouragement none-the-less (once I'd found out why they were doing it.) In our next town, while staying with the journalists mum, Jean, we were invited to speak at a Rotary Club meeting & with the Pumpkin Club at the A&W. Both Chris & I thought it was funny that I'd be speaking at a pumpkin club & assumed that the A&W stood for somthing like, "The Albertans Women's Club" or something to that effect, but we both started laughing when we pulled up to the A&W highway fast food restaraunt. In any case, it was warm & cosy with our hot breakfast in front of us as I recounted the call to pray for Christian unity. In the evening Chris & I where 'dobbed in' by Jean to be waiters at the Fort Macleod annual Senior Citizens Christmas Dinner. How could we say no to Jean? We actually worked reasonable hard that night but had some fun doing it. We didn't break anything though Chris managed to drop a knife down the industrial dishwasher's drainage outlet causing a few blank looks between the two of us. Thankfully we were able to get it out eventually & off we went again. The temperature on the daily walks has hovered between -20degC & -10degC most days though the last two have been milder & I have only needed to wear one pair of gloves. The cool temperatures have caused minor problems with our water freezing regularly & our food becoming the equivalent of flavoured cement blocks. A few weeks ago actually I was trying to eat an energy bar but couldn't break a piece off. So I clamped my teeth down on it & began to work it up & down with my right hand. After a minute or so it was only moving a few mm's but it eventually began to loosen up until, "Bang!" It snapped in half on an upward motion, sending my clenched fist flying into my eye socket. I actually staggered sideways for a few steps & then had to stop to clear my head. Oww, that hurt. A quick check up & down the road to make sure no one had seen me right hook myself & I continued on gingerly, now with two energy cement bars. In the town of High River we attended the local parish for Saturday night mass & as we were leaving were invited to stay for the youth group that was about to begin. The deal though was that before the speaking part of the youth group they would be visiting the Manor Nursing Home & then the local hospital to sign Christmas Carols! So off we went, carolling our way through the High River Senior Citizen caring facilities. We had fun, didn't get booed & arrived back at the church again without loosing anyone. After a chat with the youth group about praying for unity & the walk to-date Chris & I were invited to stay with two of the parishoners, who took great care of us. Chris drove to the next town of Okotoks & I walked in to meet him at around 1pm. From there we walked together through the streets stopping at St Peter's Anglican Church, The Uniting Church & then St James Catholic Church. The Catholic Church was brand new. It was double tiered, spacious, double data projectors with a huge sound desk. More to the point though, the people were lovely & I was invited to speak after the homily, then taken out to dinner before being dropped at another parishoners house (Frank, Louise & Kerry) to sleep for the night. Thank you for your hospitality! The next morning I met up with Fr Jack & a few more parishoners at the local coffee shop & we talked some more. Fr Jack has done some extensive work with a Lutheran Church in building a shared facility & his assitant priest was ordained an Anglican priest. The Uniting church also had an intersting background with three churches coming together to worship & study as one. On an international front, if you haven't heard, there is some extremely encouraging work taking place between the Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican & Lutheran churches at this very moment. Check it out if you have the time (or are interested at all). There are so many pieces to the puzzle of unification of Christians & so for those of us not directly involved in talks & theological discussion we still have a major role to play on two fronts; prayer & in putting love into action with all around us. I hope everyone's Christmas preparations are filling you with joy & not with debt & I'll see you again next week from somewhere near Edmonton! God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did." James 2:22
ps: A huge congratulations to Dave Callaghan & Dan Strickland back home in Australia who have been 'ontilogically changed', which apparently means they have been ordained as Deacons. Congratulations fellas! I mean... Reverends.

Uncle Sam Vs I am Sam

2007-12-02T11:05:00.000-08:00

Hello from Lethbridge, Canada! When I was all the way back in Venezuela earlier this year I began to right down a few notes here & there for possible film scripts that I'd perhaps like to develop over the coming years. I love writing & it's simply a way for me to sit back & relax. At first I only had the pieces of paper containing my travel documents to write on so I eventually bought a small notebook to keep my ideas together & off my official papers. I had no idea that 10months later I'd be paying a price for my 'doodling'. Before I leave for Russia I needed to secure a Visa, which can be very difficult. I was advised by an Australian diplomat in St Petersburg to view a certain website & secure the services of a professional Visa-acquiring company. I found a company who would secure both an invitation & visa from Russia for non-USA citizens & it simply required the filling out of a few forms, the payment of a fee & my passport to be sent to them for the Visa to be entered. The passport was supposed to be returned to Great Falls a few days before I arrived there but upon my arrival it was nowhere to be seen. Unfortunately it was the thanksgiving holiday & so no one was at work & I simply presumed that because of the holiday it had been held up in the post. After a discussion with the Grove & Donisthorpe families we decided that I'd keep walking & as soon as it arrived they'd run it up to me. I'd entered the country on the 30th of August with a 90 day Visa & so needed to be across the border by the 29th of November. As the deadline approached the Passport still hadn't arrived so we began to call the company to find out what had happened. Apparently it had been accidently thrown into the 'wrong pile' & the very appologetic company was fast to send it by express delivery to Vicky Donisthorpe's office. In the mean time I continued walking north towards the border & as is expected in these areas, the border patrol pulled over to check on me. The gentleman asked for identification & I offered him my drivers license & a photocopy of my passport page, explaining that the passport was being delivered to me the next morning. The officer looked at me blankly & informed me that I was in breach of immigration laws by not having my actual passport on me. Apparently these companies who take overseas visitor's passports do so against US law & the only way I could legally obtain a Visa for Russia would be to fly to San Francisco (the nearest Russian Embassy & sleep inside the Embassy foyer while they organised the Visa (in other words, there is no legal way to obtain a visa to Russia if you're not from the USA). The officer invited me to take a seat in the back of his patrol vehicle while we sorted it out & he began to ask me questions. He asked who was bringing the passport to me & if I had a phone number so he could call them. I reached into my bag to pull out my little notebook with Greg & Karen Grove's number in it & wouldn't you know it, it wasn't there. I was at a loss as to where it could be but it wasn't starting to look good in front of the officer. At that point he happened to turn over the photocopy of my passport, which I've been carrying since the beginning of the walk, and he turned to me asked, "What's all this?" I had no idea what he was talking about at first but my heart sank when I saw what was written on the back. The 2nd script idea I'd had while walkign Venezuela was for a political version of Ocean's Eleven where instead of hyjacking a casino, the people in question would hyjack the world leaders, blah, blah. And as it turns out I'd penned my first idea for this on the back of my passport photocopy, complete with a detailed timeline of when opperatives would be placed in government poitions, van's hired, etc. I tried to explain what it was & that I had an extened version of the script idea along with a stack of other ideas in my little notebook to which the officer looked me in the eye & said, "Which you can't find." I couldn't believe this was happening. He was a kind fellow, but I understood that the odds were stacking up against me at that point. I was locked in the back of the patrol car behind a cage screen as he radioed through to Homeland Security to find out who I was. They replied back in code & the officer turned to me & informed me that my visa was in fact expiring today! Without my passport I couldn't prove anything but I insisted that I entered the country on the 30th August & that it was written in pen, by the issuing officer, that the last day was the 29th November, today was the 28th. The officer didn't even look up, "That means you have to be out of the country on the 28th. A 90 day visa is only valid for 89days." So, with nowhere to go & no way of explaing myself we drove off down the highway to Border Patrol Headquarters. It took a few hours to sort through everything & it looked to be getting worse at one point when they believed that the compnay I'd sent my passport to was not a real company but an identiy theft scam. I sat in the interigation room chatting with my armed guard & laughing about how 'in-trouble' I was. He suggested that I perhaps brun my photocopy of the passport page. I agreed. The guard was a mild-mannered young bloke who was very chatty so it made the stay a litte more comforting. Thankfully, my little notebook WAS in my bag, but I'd accidently dropped it into the wrong pocket with some clothes & not realised that it was there. When I was leaving Great Falls, Vicki Donisthorpe had given me the front page of the Great Falls Tribune containing the story about the walk to assist with my crossing of the border. I didn't honestly think that I would need it or that it would help in any way, but as I sat in the interigation room with the armed guard I could see half a dozen officers going through everything in my folder. The door was slightly open betwen the two rooms & I caught sight of one officer pulling the newspaper front page out & opening it up. He read over it for a moment & then his face dropped. He looked up over the paper & announced to the others, "He's on the front page of the Tribune!" They all gathered around & read the story & the officer who'd brought me in said, "He didn't tell me he was on the front page of the Tribune!" I thought to myself, "I wasn't aware that the media was an offical document!?" As they dispersed back to their seats I heard an out-of-sight officer laugh that they'd need to find new jobs if they threw me in jail. They eventually tracked down the company that had my passport & found that it had already been sent & was enroute to me at that very moment. All in all it took about 3hours from start to finish but we'd pretty much all become friends by the end & one of the officers even took down the web address to check it all out in their own time. I was very appologetic & rather embarrased but by the end of the day they'd granted me an extension on my visa for no charge & the head of Homeland Security gave me a lift to where I was supposed to be staying for that night. I stayed the night with Brian & Vicky Barrows & it was a great way to end the day. They had a bible study that evening so I gladly sat down with them & opened up my little bible, which they all reckoned required a telescope to read. I had a very blessed evening with them none-the-less & was very refreshed through our time together. The next morning, Greg & Karen Grove arrived with my passport & little brother Chris who'd taken a day off the previous day. Karen & Greg kindly offered to drive me across the border & have lunch with Chris & I in Milk River. After 89days, made up of 15 rest days & 74 days on the road, I'd crossed a total of 3174km across the United States to fall short of the border by a mere 25km. So in total I clocked 3174km on foot & 25km in the back of a Patrol Car. Not a bad percentage breakdown really... I gladly accepted the lift across the border & set about planning the next stage of the walk. Regardless of how I travel whether as a free man or suspected criminal, there's always an oppurtunity to pray! A big thank you to the many people who have played such a significant role in this week passed, especially Wally & Marlene, Brian & Vicky, Brendan & Wendy, Carla, Charles & Natasha, Penny & Don, Don's dog Amigo (smartest Border Collie this side of the border), Stan & Kathy & all those who stopped on the side of the road with a bite to eat or a hot drink. It has been very cold this week with temperatures between -8degC & -33degC, but that's a whole other story :-) God bless & please keep praying for unity! Sam.
"Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident." Ps27:3

A Montanan Thanksgiving

2007-11-25T18:24:00.000-08:00

After 86days crossing the USA I now have 4days left before my visa expires with 4days of walking to go... that'll do fine. Oh, except that the Russian Embassy has my passport & was supposed to ship it to me last Wednesday but it's yet to arrive. That could be a problem, but hey, what's new? I'm not at panic stations yet & I took a photocopy of the passport in case something went wrong so I'm sure it can be sorted out eventually. C'mon the American Postal system! You can do it! Hello from Power in northern Montana, my last blog from US soil. I began my week by being snowed in at the Grove's ranch which was a fantastic place to be snowed in at. Karen & Greg were beautiful hosts as we watched 14inches of snow pile up outside. During the course of the day I had a good interview with a sports reporter from the Denver Post who was interested in doing a story on the physical demands of walking around the world. It's a bit of a side route to spreading the invitation to pray for unity, but a wide audience none-the-less. After a refreshing stop with the Grove's I was off again the next day & I headed into a week of humbling hospitality & generosity. Since leaving the Grove's Ranch I have had every single night's accomodation taken care of before I arrived. It has been incredible. One of my friends wrote me an email & commented that these days I write about bleeding feet & cold weather & it just isn't as exciting as me being held at gun point... haha, yes, I guess that's true, but at the same time, after all I've been through to get here, I'm filled with a great sense of hope because of the hospitality I've walked into here. It may not be as exciting to read, but it's far more exciting to encounter. Karen Grove rang ahead to the Sloan family in Stanford who were out driving the streets of their town looking for me as I walked in. The Sloan's invited the Gee family over in the evening to hear about what I was doing & then the next day I headed to Raynesford where the Sloan's had phoned ahead to the Hill family, who were out driving the highway looking for me as I arrived. In the mean time, before I'd arrived, the Sloan's had pulled up along side me with 2 hot chocolates, just to make sure I was ok. The next day I walked the 54km from the Hill's to Great Falls with cars stopping left, right & centre to say hello due to a front-cover Great Falls Tribune (the newspaper) thanksgiving story about the walk4one, which was organised by Karen Grove. A few hours into the walk the Sloan family pulled over again, this time on their way to taking young Steph to the airport. They'd carried with them some muslie bars (granola's) & heat packs for me due to the very cool morning air (around -10degC). As I began walking up the largest hill on the day's walk the Gee family pulled up on the otherside of the road with a warm Russian tea for me. It was well appreciated & I sat up in their car drinking my cuppa'. They were enroute to their thanksgiving dinner so I eventually jumped out of their warm van & they continued up the hill as I crossed back over. I didn't even make it to the otherside of the road before the Sloan's pulled up again on their way back home & once again they'd carried a hot chocolate for me! We said our goodbyes once more & I continued on up the hill. I still hadn't made it to the top of the stupid hill when the Grove family (two car loads worth) pulled over enroute to their thanksgiving dinner (which was also my destination for the day). They'd carried drink & food for me also but I was well supplied by that stage so it was simply a matter of enjoying their company once more & meeting a few new Groves, Heidi, Jeremy & his wife. The trip from there was slow as I tried to push hard but was stopped every 15mins by someone wanting to chat. It was well worth the 'slowness' though. I met more people in that one day than I probably had for the entire week leading up. By 6pm I was enjoying my very 1st thanksgiving dinner with the Donisthorpe & Grove families. The Donisthorpes had even gone to the trouble of driving across town & picking my brother Chris up from his hotel, so when I arrived he was sitting up in the lounge room in the middle of a full-scale game of Catch-Phrase. He must have made a good impression because Vicky Donisthorpe wanted to adopt him. Mum, is that ok? After dinner a few of us slinked into the magnificent outdoor hot tub out in the firgid air & snow. Thanksgiving was fantastic & the company second to none. I felt very blessed. The Donisthorpe's opened their home up to Chris & I & invited us to stay with them for our official rest day. We had a restful but fun day hanging out with Scott & Vicky & their 3 'kids', Noelen, Logan & Nicole. I write 'kids' because I don't think that either Logan or Nicole would classify for that age group anymore... their cars parked in the driveway would testify to that. They were great hosts & I got to meet some of Nicole's friends from university who were great faith-filled students. A bit sad sometimes that I have to keep moving on. While watching Transformers (the movie) with young Noelen (I'd give it a 7/10. A bit more of Optimus Prime would've bumped it to 8/10) Vicky came running in & announced that she'd just found some people in my next destination who would love to house both Chris & I for the next night. Incredibly, Vicky didn't even know these people! Now that's generosity on both parties behalf - & there I was watching a kids a movie, not exactly working hard for anything to happen... Vicky & Scott stocked Chris & I up with supplies & a few pieces of 'memorabilia' including a photo of the family. I didn't have much on me, but I wanted to leave something with them, so they now have my expired drivers license stuck on their fridge :-) (it's not much but it's better than my expired socks). Chris & I left Great Falls under darkness & walked a huge 51km to a small town called Power. Chris finished the day off well, which is amazing considering the distance & that it was his 1st big hit out since his 1st 'not-so-good' beginning 2weeks ago. In Power we were greeted on the side of the road by Marcus Raba, who very cheerfully guided us to his home, where we met his wife, Pam, and their 30 year old son, David. Dave's just moved home after basically having a huge conversion & I have to say, he's one of the most intersting & artistically gifted people I've met on the whole trip. He's kind of a cross between St Augustine & St Francis... Chris took today off & instead, Marcus joined me on the road. We walked & prayed to the next town where we spoke at the local church & met the townsfolk. Marcus returned from there & I pushed on down the highway until David & Chris came & did the pick-up late in the afternoon, returning me to their home for tonight's sleep. In the morning, Marcus will run me back out to my finishing point & Chris & I'll begin the new day. And yes, tomorrow's accomodation & the next night's have both been arranged by the Raba's already. God is good. And apparently the Montanan's like to carry his generosity & love. What a place. This week I had two cars slide off the road right in front of me due to the icy conditions, I walked through sub-zero temperatures for most of the week & I also saw a herd of Buffalo, which would normally be the focus of the blog entry, but the Montanan hospitality, family after family, has just left me speechless (obviously other than everything written above). Thank you to all of you. May the Lord continue to live in you & with you. Tomorrow I'm off to Conrad & the home of Fr Michael & I'll see if I can't get that missing passport back. All the best for the coming week & please keep praying for the unity of all Christians in love & in truth. Peace be with you, Sam.
"Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ." 1Peter 5:14
ps: I hope you had a great flight Steph, and to Heidi, Nicole, Oli, Jimmer & Katie, I hope you made it to your 2nd homes safely! Happy studying.

The Trouble With Leaving Billings

2007-11-18T21:28:00.000-08:00

Hello from the Grove family's Ranch near Moccison, Montana! I was supposed to leave Billings last Monday to continue the journey north but on Sunday night decided to not continue on but instead check myself into hospital to get my left big toe seen to. So, 1st thing Monday, our wonderful host, Bob, drove Chris & I to St Vincents hospital where I checked in. The doctor was great & after I'd payed $100 she very kindly yanked my toe nail out with pliers. Well, she did firstly inject it with anasthetic, though it did take 4 seperate injections to finally deaden the silly thing. She then patched up the wounded area, fitted me out with everything I needed & sent me on my way. Sounds simple enough but somehow it still took 5hours... Chris video taped the 'yanking of the nail' part & I watched it afterwards & it still made me cringe! I don't particularly like needles/blood/scalpels/etc. I hobbled out of St Vincents & across the road to a motel where we checked in for the night. The next morning I felt as though I could walk on so simply wrapped the toe up very neatly (as instructed) & pulled the boots on very slowly. By the time Chris & I had travelled only 25km though we had to stop & make plans to head back to Billings - not because my toe was too sore, but because Chris's new boots had pretty much taken all the skin off both heels. Chris noted that he was walking in a very similar fashion to an old guy he takes care of in a nursing home back in Australia. I could believe that. We sat on the side of the road for a while talking over our options. We decided to head back to Billings, get a motel & then the following day get him on a bus to Great Falls (9days ahead) & I'd walk on. It's illegal to hitch-hike in Montana so I was wondering how we were going to get a lift. There wasn't much traffic out there either. A classic white Mustang came thundering down the road & wooshed past us as I prayed a little prayer, "Lord, please, can you provide a lift for us?" I stood there staring down the very empty stretch of road for a moment & then, on the other side of the road, about half a minute later, the white Mustang pulled up. "You guys need a lift to Billings?" We both happily climbed aboard the old classic & where dropped off right outside our motel again. We planned our week's out, organised a meeting point & then early the next morning I headed off again, leaving Chris to sleep-in a little before his midday bus. I would've liked to have driven back to the 25km mark but with no transport opperating in that direction I had no choice but to walk it again. As I was passing by the 12km mark & the sun popped up over the mountains a classic white Mustang pulled up alongside me, "You need a lift back to where you were?" I laughed as I happily accepted the lift back out there. He was headed back out to work & had been keeping an eye out for me so I made it out to km25 a little quicker than I thought I would & then continued on up to Broadview. I've been amazed how many people I've meet since then who saw me walking on that second morning coming out of Billings & wanted to know what I was doing. It turns out that walking that 1st 9km was actually important! All in God's perfect timing. I slept in Broadview on the front bench-seat of the local fire truck, which was parked inside the firestation. It was great, I loved it! A big thank you to the gentleman who offered the truck to me. Mind you, I was a little concerned at what would happen if there was a fire that night, "Sorry mate, this truck's taken. Zzzzzz." From Broadview I had a little over 100km to cover in 2days to make it to Harlowton. I slept the 1st night in my tent outside the Rygate fire station & wouldn't you know it, there was a fire. I wasn't in the way or anything, but it was kind of noisey for quite a few hours! There was a grass fire about 60km away & it was pretty huge by all accounts but they got it under control eventually & then on their return stood outside my tent at 1am asking each other why there was someone camping in Ryegate. "Trying to sleep here..." On the walk into Harlowton two mini-buses drove past filled with youth & they gave a big wave. I waved back & we continued in our respective directions not aware that we would meet again. In Harlowton I did the rounds, stopping off at a few churches & leaving a calling card with the call to pary for unity. The only place with anyone presnt was the Catholic Church where I met the parish priest who offered to shout me dinner after I'd settled in to my motel room. It was a good meal & company after such a grueling 100km from Broadview. I think though I may have seen one of the most puzzling sights of this entire trip thus far in the grand town of Harlowton. On the outskirts of the town, next to the motel I stayed in, there's a small playground. There was a swing, a sea-saw & a gazeebo - all pretty basic. I could see something in the gazeebo but couldn't work out what it was. As I drew nearer I finally realised that what I was looking at was two antelope, hanging from the rafters. In a kids playground. It's hunting season here in Montana right now & the motel was full of hunters. And hence the gazeebo was... filled with antelope. I wondered at that point if after stringing their two kills up in the kids playground did the hunters at least spend some time enjoying the sea-saw? Somehow I don't think so. I can't believe they hung them in a kids playgound. And no, there were no children to be seen for miles. I don't think that 'Bambi' is considered a classic out in these parts :-)There was to be a mass at my next destination, Judith Gap, on the next day (Saturday) at 5pm so early Saturday morning I packed up & trekked up through the wind farms to Judith Gap, some 30km away. The mass was very small & personal. Afterwards I had the pleasure of meeting everyone there, who seemingly belonged in some way to 1 of 2 familes. I was going to put my tent up in town but Margaret, an elderly lady piped up & offered me the spare bed at her place. Not long after that the youngest couple there, Brian & Sarah Mawer, invited me to dinner at their place. Both the Mawer's & Margaret lived further on out the road from Judith Gap so with their permission, I plonked my backpack in Margaret's car & then walked & prayed the 1mile on to the Mawer's ranch, where Brian picked me up from the front gate. The meal was fantastic (particularly the pumpkin scroll for dessert) & with a very new position of not having to lug my backpack around I had the oppurtunity to then jog it off. It was a further 6km on to Margaret's place, which I jogged under a half-moon night with snow capped mountains on both sides of me. It was very quite & very still as i jogged along & apart from the possibility of running into a mountain lion, I enjoyed it. I rocked up at Margaret's place at around 9:30pm & after a good chat finally hit the sack. The next morning was today & I had another 50km walk ahead of me but at least this time with some idea of what was ahead. Back in Judith Gap a husband & wife had orgainsed for me to stay with their relatives, the Groves, near Moccasin. I was a little late leaving Margaret's place but with a very cool day I was able to push through with only one stop at 'Eddie's Corner', a highway stop-in. I grabbed a good lunch, called the Grove's to arrange a time & meeting point & then had a guy walk up to me & ask how far I'd walked. I turned around & there was two mini-buses full of youth dis-embarking for the rest rooms & take away store. We both remembered passing each other a few days earlier & it was great to hear that they were actually a youth group who had headed down to Billings for a Christian Youth Conference. It was great to get to know a few of them & chat for a brief moment before both of our journies continued, this time in same direction. I arrived safely here at the ranch despite the onset of snow in the last few kilometres & Greg & Karen have made me feel very much at home. My brother Chris is doing well, he's now in Great Falls & waiting for me to arrive, which should be in 3days time. By this time next week, God willing, I'll be writing to you from Canadian soil, where the moose are big & ice-hockey rules. Until then, please pray on. God bless, Sam.
"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, & it will be yours." Mark 11:24

Opera, Ozzie Osbourne & Oh brother!

2007-11-11T20:35:00.000-08:00

Hello from Billings, Montana! I'm well & resting along with my younger brother, Christopher, who arrived in Billings last night. I was going to get him to write something on the blog today but he's busy talking to our hosts upstairs. So it's just me for the moment. I haven't seen any family for 11months so it's been great to have him here. We stayed up until 1am last night talking & catching up before eventually falling asleep. His trip here took him from Launceston to Sydney, to Hawaii, to Vancouver, to Calgary, to Denver & then to Billings. He did note that it felt like he was descending into a spiralling hole. Well, now he's just going to have to find a way to walk out again. Funnily enough, after a year apart, I didn't recognise him at first, although I've never seen him with a beard either so that kind of threw me. He couldn't even grow one last time I saw him! :-) I forgot to mention last week that as the sun set en-route to Greybull I saw the most fantastic sight - the southern migration of Arctic Geese. There had to have been well over 1000 of the little guys, in flying v's of around 50 each, sprawling across a brilliant sunset. It was awesome. What was unexpected though was that as I watched one particuler flying 'V' I saw 2 geese break off from the formation & head back into the north. I was thinking to myself, "Wrong way guys! You've just come from there," but I soon stood in awe as I watched them fly back to a goose that had fallen behind. The 2 geese circled around & pulled up alongside the straggler & together they formed their own little 3-geese flying 'V' & powered on back to the main group. It was brilliant. Nice one guys, unity in action. From Greybull I said farewell to Fr Michael & trekked the very long journey to Lovell, where Fr Ekley was waiting for me thanks to to a call ahead from the parish prist back in Worland. Fr Ekley spoke a very cultured english & spoke of his love of the opera & how his mother had always wanted him to pursue a career there. I noted that when I sang my mum had always simply asked me to shut up... Hi mum :-) From Lovell I headed to a town called Frannie where there was nothing more than a place to park my tent. It was a very small town. There was a bar though, so I popped in a ordered a meal. Due to the small size of the place I ended up being quiet involved in the bar conversation & felt like I wasw sitting in on an old episode of 'Cheers'. The lady behind the bar attended a nearby church so she was eager to take the website address & invitation to pray for unity there this weekend. Then Terry, the fellow at the end of the bar who had just finished working at the Limstone Quarry, piped up & offered me a space at his house. He had no beds at his place so I took the floor in one room & he & his daughter took the floor in another. It was basic but a lot nicer & warmer than sleeping in the tent out here. The next day I crossed the state border into Montana & with a view of the great Yellowstone National Park mountains in the distance & two bald eagles circling above me I trekked over 50km to Bridger. I arrived late & the motel was unfortunately closed. I grabbed dinner at the local steak house & they offered me the slab of concrete out the back of the restaraunt to put my tent on. It was an uncomfortable sleep so I started walking well before dawn & arrived in Laurel by mid afternoon. My feet weren't doing too well as usual but that's pretty normal these days. I stopped in the Laurel Bible Church & met the very cheerful & youthful Pastor Chris. He was in the middle of preparing his preaching for the weekend service but we ended up chatting for a long time anyway. We kept coming back to one point in particular - what is unity? It was a very uplifting conversation & as we spoke I think we found ourselves abandonning to God more & more. He often meets with all the Church leaders in Laurel to pray & to build the bonds of unity. He said that it wasn't always easy, often challenging but very fruitful. Please keep these men & women in our prayers as they seek truth & love in what can be an uncomfortable setting. Laurel was a big town so I wasn't concerned about finding a bed in a motel. Chris had offered me a place at their Youth Centre but there were no showers (& I was needing one) so I headed off to find a motel room. There were 5 motels in town but incredibly there wasn't a single bed available anywhere. Why? Wouldn't you know it, Ozzie Ozbourne & Rob Zombie (two Heavy Metal rockers) were playing 25km away & everything was booked out for a 40km radius of the stadium. Thanks Ozzie. The girl at the last motel I stopped at was very kind though & invited me to wait in the coffee lounge in case a cacellation came through. I had to wait about 90mins but eventually one did come through & the bedroom & shower was all mine. I enjoy the simple things a lot more now-a-days. Last night I arrived in Billings, met the Harris family at St Patrick's Cathedral & they offerd me a place to stay. Bob Harris ran me up to the airport at 10:20pm last night to pick up my 20yr old brother Chris & we're now planning the pray assult from there converted basement. Hi, Chris here, I'm the handsome one & obviously the funny one as well. Haha. Anyway, at the moment I'm not sure what to expect, I'm a sprinter you see, so in other words, soft. I'm looking forward to it all though & really hoping to experience & learn from the faith on this side of the world & just to do something out of the ordinary. I'll keep in touch through Sam. Cheers, Chris. Sam back here again now... I'll be contact again next week from somehwere near Great Falls. Until then, please pray on spread the invitation - 4:01! God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"The end of a matter is better than its beginning & patience is better than pride." Eccl 7:8

11th November - Rememberence Day - "Lest we Forget"

A Canyon, a Racoon, Lavender & Coyote Ugly

2007-11-05T11:57:00.000-08:00

From the rural city of Greybull in northern Wyoming, g'day! How was your week? I'm sore. Since posting the last blog 9days ago I've managed 3 unscheduled rest days & yet I'm still on schedule. This of crouse has been made possible through walking long distances every day that I was on the road (smallest day for the this past week was 51km!). I left Casper in the early morning under the watchful lens of a newspaper reporter keen to get a snap of me 'in action' but by around midday I was feeling the effects of the lingering chest infection & was looking for a rest spot every hour. An hour after sunset I arrived at the one house town I was supposed to stay at but with sickness & soreness taking a grip I decided to push on an extra 15km to a town that apparently had a motel. Halfway there, at 9pm, a couple pulled over to offer me a lift. They gave me the unpleasant news that the motel had closed down for the winter season, but after much delineration I still declined the lift & walked on knowing that I'd have to pitch my tent anyway. I arrived at Powder River late in the evening & sure enough, the Motel was closed. The town wasn't very large & the few dogs that also called it home took a disliking to me being there & began barking uncontrolably. A minute later a young man by the name of Theo emerged with his dog to see what the comotion was all about. By this stage I was beginning to unpack my tent but he soon put a stop to that by offering his help & he called the owner of the motel who came down, unlocked it for me & let me stay free of charge! It was such a sweet sleep. I woke the next day just in time to jump next door to the only church in town & had a great time meeting the beautiful folk of the Powder River Church. At the end of the service the Pastor & his wife invited me to stay with them for the night & despite me 'needing' to keep pushing on down the road, Pastor Chris pressed on me that I wasn't well & more importantly, it was the Sabbath - so rest. So I did. The next day I headed off at dawn for the 2day, 100km walk to Shoshoni, still not 100% but at least feeling a lot better. The following day I happened to catch sight of my very 1st Coyote & I had enough time to pull my camera out & film it while it slinked away through the sage brush. What really suprised me was how beautiful this animal is. It's a small version of a wolf - 'Wolf-Lite' looks the same, half the calories! It had a stunning silver a grey coat & looked nothing like the Wiley Coyote I'd grown up with. I'd naturally presumed (because of the cartoon) that coyotes were slobbering, gangly, long-eared mutts, but it couldn't be further from the truth. Mind you, I should've known better than to trust those cartoons for my environmental studies. I'm yet to see a rabbit that looks like Bugs nor Tasmanian Devil that looks like Taz. And if I ever had a yellow canary that looked like tweetie... I'd be taking it to the vet for an MRI to search for a tumour in that oversized head. Not long after this I was able to confirm the animals identity with a local who had pulled over to chat. To my amazement, the guy had a a pet racoon clambering all over his pick-up. Its name was Roxie & it she was only 1yr old. She was so inquisitive & playful that it reminded me of some of the monkeies I'd met in Venezuela. It was great! She lent out the window & grabbed the camera while I was filming her & so I have 60sec of footage where the only thing you can see is a mass of racoon fur while hearing my voice, "Let go! No. Get off... no, let it go. Don't touch that! Let... let go." I'm sure it'll win an oscar one day :-) As I entered the town of Shoshoni another car pulled over & it was the couple from the 1st night when I was walking out of Casper. The lady in the car jumped out & ran to the back of the car where she retrieved a paper bag. Thinking that she might see me again on the road she had prepared a 'Comfort Pack' for me. Now, I've always associated comfort packs with stuff like, moisturiser, a face washer & lavendar scented soap, so i wasn't exactly jumping for joy, in fact, I was a little bemused. I quickly learnt that my definition of 'comfort pack' was limited & I opened up to find a bottle of water, some fruit & oven baked pumpkin seeds! For that I was truely thankful! The lavendar scented soap would've been ok too actually. From Shoshoni I headed north up through the most spectaculr piece of land I've seen in a very long time. It was called the Wind River Canyon & it was simply breathe-taking. I had 50km of fast flowing Wind River to follow through a 900m rock-walled monster of a canyon. The peaks were covered in snow & the river disappeared behind mountain after mountain. It belonged in the 'Lord of the Rings' movies. It was amazing. I actually had trouble praying that day, not because I didn't feel like praying, but because I was so distracted the whole way through. I ended the day with a stiff neck from looking up the whole time but I was smiling the whole way - especially when I finally broke my silence to bounce a few U2 songs off the canyon walls. I arrived in Thermopolis after sunset & was able to visit the Baptist Church just before their Wednesday service. I then walked on & found the Catholic Church & their bible study group. Fr Hugo offered me the churches guest rooms & so I unpacked for night & settled in. Fr Hugo finished up with the class & walked in as I was sitting on the floor trying to remove my sock from my bleeding by toe. They had become one. In the end I gave up, left it dangling & we simply sat there & chatted for a couple of hours about life, faith & everything in between. I ended up not walking again the next day because of some problems I was having in organising my Russian visa so instead I spent a frustrating day at the computer. It was an unproductive day & in the end, at the advice of Fr Hugo, I stayed a 2nd day in Thermopolis to sort out the problems. I got there in the end & I was very happy to have spent 2days physically resting. Thermopolis has the world's largest mineral hot springs but I didn't get a chance to go for a dip. As I was leaving on the Saturday morning I walked past the enormous springs nestled between 2 mountains & couldn't help but notice the rather strong sulphur smell eminating from the ponds. It smelt bad. Very bad. And with the temperature hovering around 2degC I watched a few couples slip into the warm, stinking water. I'd rather run a warm bath in my own home thanks. I hope they had lavendar scented soap on hand for the aftermath. I walked on up to a place called Worland where I went to Mass the next morning & then proceeded further afield to a town called Basin. There as nothing in Basin when I arrived last night so I pushed on to todays destination, walking 2days worth in one, to arive at Greybull around 1am. The last 10km were incredibly painful last night & my feet were burning up. I thought the pain was because of simple overworking. Every step I took was accompanied by either a groan, a moan or something resembling an aggrivated Grizzly Bear. When I did finally arrive at a small motel at 1am last night I surgically removed my socks to a grusome sight. My left foot was covered in blood. "Oh, that's why it hurt so much." So, today, once more, I'm resting & allowing my body to recover. I think pretty soon I won't just be praying for the unity of the church but also for the unity of my body! I'm doing fine though & still enjoying everyday. The Wyoming folk are beautiful people & the land is extraordinary. Many here are joining in the prayer for Christian unity & this in itself is more than enough motivation to just buy another pack of band-aids & walk on. God bless & please pray4one! Sam
"One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple." Psalm 27:4
NEXT WEEK: Meet the Clear's. My younger brother, Christopher, will be joining me from Billings to Edmonton. I'll let him to the writing...

The Unforgetable Crossing of Shirley Basin

2007-10-26T17:58:00.000-07:00

Hello to everyone from Casper in central Wyoming! I don't suspect that I'll forget much of the year that has passed but I doubt that this week, from Rock River to Casper, will ever fail to make me smile. I ended up staying a day in Rock River after the snow fall during my last blog entry pretty much closed me in. Forrest, Susane and Josh were impecable hosts & I had one of the most relaxing days in a long time. With the town covered in a blanket of white I attended the only church in town for the Sunday service, a small Baptist church of around 15 faithful. It was a quiet, slow day but what a welcomed change! On Monday morning I continued on with young Josh joining me until the town boundry. At the town boundry we turned around & returned to their house to retrieve my food that I'd left in the fridge & then once again walked to the town boundry... A big hand shake & thanks to Josh & I was on my way into the snowy wilderness. As I left Rock River for Medicine Bow the wind picked up & began to whip up snow drifts. I later found out that the temperature was around negative 14degC, so when you add on to that the wind-chill factor we're probably looking at something relative to -20degC. IT WAS SO COLD! Not far from the town a sudden gust of wind blew small particles of snow up through my balaclava & straight onto my face. I acted like any big tough Aussie would & unintentionally let out a high-pitched shrill. My very manly squeal scared me as much as the freezing conditions & I couldn't help but laugh as I stumbled on down the road. I couldn't walk on at one point & sort shelter in a road culvert for 15min until I'd warmed back up a bit. It wasn't a long walk to Medicine Bow but it felt like 100km! I walked on past the famed dinosaur graveyard at Como Bluff & eventually made it one piece (one solid ice block!). I checked-in to the famed Virginian Hotel; an antique hotel still in all it's old charm & in the middle of nowhere. It was made famous through a novel called 'the Virginian', which was set in the very place I now stood. And it was only $27 a night. Turns out the prices haven't changed in 100yrs either. The afternoon & evening in Medicine Bow was a tense time for me. Not because of Medicine Bow, it was a beautiful little town, but because of what I knew laid ahead - a 148km crossing of the Shirley Basin to the city of Casper, with nothing but wilderness for at least 130km. It would take 3days at a testing pace with no back-up & no way of resupplying food or water. Internally I was feeling uneasy about the intensly cold weather & 148km walk ahead. I got to a quiet point where there was pretty much nothing left but me & God. I wasn't praying with words so-to-speak, but I think I'd just saddled up alongside Him as I mentally looked out at my next 3days. In the quiet I felt the Lord say one thing, "Trust", and that was it, but it was said with conviction. I got a good night's sleep, packed up early & headed off before sunrise into a freezing darkness. As I crossed the Medicine Bow River & across the town boundry the 1st sign of morning began to appear on the horizon. It was the most spectacular glow of red & orange & in a way promised a hope of warmth. The rising sun would eventually show up a winter wonderland of snow & mountains under a clear blue sky. The wind picked up throughout the day but the cold dissipated & I was able to, for the 1st time in 2weeks, walk without my jacket. I entered the Shirley Basin in the mid morning & was gob-smacked at the vastness of this mountain guarded basin that extended for probably 80km. I passed by herds of antelope grazing & felt like a small dot plodding along out in the middle of nowhere. Probably because I was. I walked to a point 51km from Medicine Bow & as the sun began to set, found a great little spot on the side of the road to pitch my tent. As I sat down to eat my dinner the wind stopped & it was dead quiet. I could see two herds of anteploe grazing in the distance & then I faintly herd the cry of Coyote's on the far-off foothills. It was, to a point, beautifully peaceful. I half expected to look out into the distance & see Kevin Costner riding along with a group of Indians as they hunted down a herd of Buffalo... "Tatonka!" As the sun set I snuggled into my sleeping bag & drifted off to sleep. By 2am though I was beginning to struggle with the rapidly dropping temperature. The threat was very real & it was due to the geography of the place. I was out in the middle of a massive basin with snow capped peaks surrounding me. With no breeze what-so-ever & clear skies above, the cold air began to flow downwards & the world around me began to freeze. By 4am I discovered that there are few better scientific tests to show how cold it is than breathing out & watching your breathe ascend to the tent roof... & freeze to it! My tent became an ice cave! I had stalactites! I ended up wearing full thermals plus balaclava in my sleeping bag to try & combat the cold but with one final thought, "This sucks", I packed up, shook the ice from my tent & began walking again at 5am. It was still very cold but with no breeze it wasn't too difficult to cover up. I walked & prayed through until sunrise & waited patiently for my water supply to thaw... By mid morning I was still sucking on ice chunks when a fellow called Gary pulled over to offer me a lift. I explained what I was doing & he responded with an emphatic, "Hallelujah Jesus!" He asked me if I needed a drink. I said yes. He pulled out a huge bottle of gatorade, which he'd been carrying but hadn't yet opened. He also threw me some snickers bars & after a great little chat I was left to continue walking, praying & sculling gatorade. With a large variety of wildlife around I was wide-eyed for most of the trip & as I walked up & out of the basin & through the surrounding mountains I caught sight of something move on the hillside a km from me. I grabbed my camera & started filming as I zoomed in. It was a mountain lion. It ran on up the hill & then stopped & starred straight back at me. I thought, "I can see you too mate" & watched in awe as it powered on up over the hill. I was on top of the world after that & as I passed by more antelope, hawks, eagles & beavers I felt very blessed. Very Forrest Gump, but very blessed. In the late afternoon a funny thing happened - I had a craving for peanut butter. Odder things have happened. An hour later, Gary pulled over again (on his way home) & guess what? While in town he'd bought me 3 peanut butter filled choclate cup-cakes! Haha, brilliant!! Thankyou Gary, thankyou Lord. By the end of the 2nd day I had made it to km 104. The best place I could find for my tent was outside a horse ranch. I wandered on into their indoor rodeo arena to see if it was ok for to me occupy their front gate grass. As I walked in, I was greeted by 3 cowboys resting against the bull-fence. Suddenly the lights went out in a power failure & so I reached for my torch & flicked it on. One of the cowboys noted, "I got no idea who you are but I'm glad you're here!" The guys were very welcoming & offered a safer piece of ground to me just on the edge of their arena. One of the cowboys, Jet, did a very kind food run for me & returned from his house with fruit, jerky & home cooked cake. It took the pressure off my dwindling supplies massively & after a good dinner I managed to get a good night's sleep. Day 3 of the crossing to Casper began before sunrise again & I headed up along a dirt track (road 401) through beatiful rolling hills & along stark, steep ridges that droped away massively on both sides. I was beginning to hurt physically from the pace & I could feel a chest infection coming on so the quiet wilderness walking was just the thing to keep me 'not caring' about the pain. By mid afternoon, slightly ahead of schedule I limped into Casper with a few bleeding toes & only one piece of chewing gum left :-) I wanted to find a hotel straight away, shower & curl up in bed but I felt the Lord ask for that one extra effort - "Go to the Church". The 1st Church was the Paradise Christian Centre where I stopped & extended an invitation to pray for unity & i then passed a few churches with no one present before I walked up to the Catholic Church. It was 5pm & apparently the priest had just sat down to eat his dinner before watching the World Series Baseball 2nd final. His reaction at my untimely entry? He left everything & gave me his full attention. Meet Fr Fox. With his dinner waiting, the baseball about to start & a meeting scheduled for an hour from then he responded to my parting question, "Do you know of somewhere cheap to stay?" with his time & his car. He drove me around town in an attempt to find me a place to stay but with a huge tournamnet in town pretty much everything was booked up. His solution? He put me up at the Hotel Marriott. Oh-my-goodness. I walked into my room & just stood there, wide-eyed, starring at the size of the room & the amount of stuff in it. I feel out of place here. My boots aren't shiney!!! Fr Fox didn't leave it there though, he picked me up this morning & took me to mass & then did all he could to help me prepare for the next 15days (today was a rest day). In order to help spread the invitation to pray for unity he even called the newspapers & tv news crew who turned up for interviews at lunch time while we ate ordered pizza. It was supposed to be his day off today. This afternoon 'Foxy' finished off my busy day by driving me up to the mountain overlooking Casper & we chatted about anything & everything. What ever it was, we seemed to always end in laughter. I've felt so blessed this past week. It was incredibly tough & from high-pitched shrills, to ice, to bleeding toes the only thing that fills my mind now is gratitude. God is good. Please join us in prayer, particularly at 4:01pm each day as we continue to pray 4 1. May we be one. God bless & peace be with you, Sam.
"Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you." Psalm 9:10

Buffalo Wings, Wilderness & Wild Walking (-2days)

2007-10-20T17:38:00.000-07:00

I'm in Wyoming! Hi folks & welcome back to the walk. I feel like Survivor Man after this week on the road. The week began easily enough with a short walk to Fort Collins where I met the pastor at the Presbyterian Church & then bumped into the assistant priest at the Catholic Church. Fr Peter was a young man from Poland & after I'd extended an invitation to pray for unity he extended an invitation to join him for a quick dinner at the 'Outback Steakhouse', an Australian themed restaraunt. On the menu apparently Tasmania is famous for its Buffalo Wings?? So I ordered them. They were great. Still bemused though that I grew up in Tasmania & yet had never heard of buffalo wings as a local dish :-) I eat very slowly & Fr Peter had to return to the church before I was finished so he left me to eat as much as I wanted until he returned 2hrs later. By the time he returned I'd managed to finish my dinner. As I said, I eat slowly. The great thing though was that in that time Fr Peter had organised for me to stay with a young couple, Robert & Melanie. They had a beautiful home & an inspiring faith. They also had two overly energetic cats that took a liking to my bed, my bag, my boots, my socks, my gloves, my feet, my hands, etc. I enjoyed my stay there! I originally thought that the highway I was following traced around the base of the Rockies but I soon discovered that from Fort Collins it headed straight up & over. Ten miles out of Fort Collins I discovered that I was walking without my wallet. I kept walking & tried to trace back over the previous day & came to the conclusion that it was in Fr Peter's car. I stopped at a service station & called the church office & after a quick search they found it. Thankfully, Melanie was heading out along the highway to her work place, a Benedictine Abbey in the middle of nowhere, later in the day. The Abbey was to be my destination as well with nothing around for 30km either side. Melanie pulled over with my wallet in the early afternoon & I continued on up into the mountains. The landscape was unbelievable & the air very cool. I could see snow falling on the distant peaks & as the sun set I had wide open wilderness, herds of dear grazing at regualr intervals, no traffic & all the time in the world to pray. It was... complete :-) I arrived at the Benedictine Abbey at 8pm to a retreat centre full of very motherly women very willing to take care of a guy who'd just walked & prayed 55km! I was mothered to death. I didn't even get to met the Benedictine sisters until mass the next morning. The women on retreat fed me, set me up for the night & topped up my supplies for the next days walk. I felt very loved! After sleeping the night on a make-shift bed made of cushioned dining chairs & early morning mass I headed further through the mountains to the Wyoming border. The wind was incredibly strong & soooo cold. I was stopped dead in my tracks a number of times by the powerful winds & despite wearing a balaclava I had to stop & turn away from the fridgid wind a number of times. At 2:30pm I stopped into a roadside store & found that the temperature at that time was negative 2deg & the wind speed around 90km/hr. I grabbed my camera out & did a quick dialouge on the 'current conditions' but it's a little diffcult to watch because I'm shivering so much that the shots a little shakey! Realistic effect though. I entered the town of Laramie at around 8:30pm & was met by the local Marshall, Brian Fritzen who did the usual line of questioning & request for i.d. but then did the unusual thing of paying for me to stay the night in a motel. He simply paid for my night & wished me all the best. As simple as that. There had been weather warnings for the past week about a large cold front & low pressure system moving through so I had thought about staying in Laramie for a few days until it passed. The next morning though I worked out that I had just enough time up my sleve to make it to Rock River, a day & a halfs walk away. I had a quick stop in at the Laramie Christian Centre with the beautiful Pastor Allen, Joyce & Joanne & then hit the road again. As I left Laramie a friendly dog run up to me for a pat & belly rub but then wouldn't leave me! I tried evrything to get him to go home but he simply looked at me with puppy dog eyes & continued to follow me. Out on the highway he had no road-sense & almost caused a few accidents so it was getting a little serious. I ended up stopping a passing truck & asking the guy to take him back before something happened but he was reluctant to take him onboard. I scolded him (the dog, that is) & tried other means to get him to go but he kept on following. After 5 miles the somewhat inevitable happened when he ran out across the road in front of a speeding truck who ploughed him down withbrutl force. It was deflatting to witness & I was then left with the grim task of removing his body from the road. Somewhat of a senseless waste. I walked pretty quietly from then on. I found a place to pitch my tent for the night & after some reading & dinner I drifted off to sleep. And dreamed about walking around the world - funny that. Today I hastily completed the rest of the trip into Rock River with the approaching cold front looming. Once in town I found that there were no churches & the motel had closed for the off-season. No sooner had I thought, "I wasn't particularly looking forward to sleeping in my tent again tonight" and a voice called out form across the road. Actually, it was from the pub to be exact. Meet Forest, new resident of Rock River, bar tender & a very hospitable bloke who has lent me his caravan until the storm passes over! And the storm has now hit. There's around 10cm of snow already & could be up to 30cm by tomorrow morning. Pending conditions I may stay here for an extra day until it's a tad safer to continue. Oh, & Forest's caravan, it's not a caravan, it's a house on wheels - it's enormous!! Beats my tent hands down. So here I am, now only a couple of days away from reigning in those extra 15days in order to cross the Canadian border on time & enjoying watching my 1st snow fall in 14months. The Lord continues to provide at every step & after a great talk with Fr Peter back in Fort Collins I'm all inspired again (actually, I hadn't realised how much more inspired I could be). Please continue (or begin) to pray for unity! Love & truth. I hope you have a great week, God bless & may his peace be with ya! Sam.
"The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer." Ps 18:2

Sprinklers, Tumbleweed & The Mighty Rockies (-3days)

2007-10-15T15:39:00.000-07:00

G'day folks! I'm sitting up in the main auditorium of the Loveland Church of Christ at their sound desk using the internet... Thanks Kirsten! I've passed through Denver & I'm now tracking north along the mighty Rocky Mountains, which I might point out, are looking rather white today! The temperature has dropped significantly over the past week & it's a rarity for the thermometer to top 10deg Celcius. I'm enjoying the cooler conditions though & I'm happy to have left the Colorado Plain's wind behind. It was getting a tad demorolising - I'm used to being overtaken by trucks, cars, motorbikes & bicycles but when I started to be overtaken by scores of tumble-weed, I knew I'd fallen a few notches down the highway food chain. The walk into Denver was taxing with two of the days stretching well over 70km. Both were not intended to be that far but due to the circumstances I found myself in I had few other choices. The 1st day, 79km, happened because I arrived in a town at 12am & there was no where to sleep for the night. I laid my sleeping bag out behind the community centre on a lovely lush green section of grass & began to drift off to sleep... until the pop-up sprinklers came on at 2:10am. I was sent scrambling & tumbling but not before all my gear had been thouroughly drenched. It was 2degC & with a cool breeze blowing I didn't feel like sitting around trying to shiver my self dry. So I packed up & continued walking on through the night, eventually arriving at 9:30am at a place called Hugo (which is at mile 401!). I slept the rest of that day in a dry & warm hotel after the local Catholic Church kindly served me up a hot breakfast. The second long day, 74km, came about because I arrived in a town that scared me & so I kept walking! It was around 55km from Limon to Dear Trail but there was no church there & no hotel. The lady serving at the gas station suggested I put my hammock up at the local park but on my way down there I spotted a big old couch sitting out the front of a run down house. It was stupid of me to do so, but not looking forward to spending a cold night in the hammock I very abscent mindedly walked up to the house, knocked & inquired of the young man living there if I could 'rent his couch for the night'? His reponse was to ask me to wait while he checked with his wife. I stood on the front step & waited for at least 10mins until finally the man's wife opened the front door & demanded that I get off the property. At that same moment the couple's skin-head friend arrived at speed, sliding his car up into the drive way. He jumped out with a mean scowl on his face & walked straight up to me. I quickly apologised & left the property promptly. As I did I over-heared the man's wife say to the skin-head friend that the police & sheriff were on the way! I turned & asked why & she simply yelled back, "Because you wouldn't leave!" So apparently in Dear Trail "Wait here" means "No, go away." Anyway, I didn't feel like putting my hammock up anywhere in the town & so after finishing my dinner under a street light I continued on into the night to finally arrive at the next town around 1am (& the hotel was open). After that little episode I've ditched the hammock I bought a one-man tent & more winter clothing to get me through the next few months. Denver was very beautiful though the 1st little strip was far from pleasent with many homeless people & even more intoxicated (it was around 3pm on a Friday). I had a couple of good chats with some of the homeless guys but it was so sad to see the incredible difference between that section of Denver & the rest. The next day I met the very personable Archbishop Charles for a brief 5mins but spent most of my time in Denver simply shopping for the winter gear I needed for the trip ahead. The last few days have been exceptionally cold & thus I was able to test my new gear out & I'm happy to say that even though it was hovering near 3degC for two days straight & I was plumetted by a frigid north wind & rain I pulled through without a shiver nor wet socks. The sky cleared today & revealed a very white Rocky Mountain range with snow blanketing the slopes. The leaves are changing colour & it's providing a spectacular back drop to the days of prayer on the road. The hospitality since Denver has been fantastic & I've been able to drop in on many churches & extend an invitation to pray for unity. I've received a few invitations myself, such as to the Broomfield Parish Oktoberfest Community Event. I drank soft drink all night but had a wonderful time meeting the many people who'd turned out. And then last night I happened to knock on a Church door just as the youth group was gathering & I was invited to stay, participate, eat & then sleep in the lounge room of the youth group leaders house! Brilliant. I'll see you next week from somewhere near the not-so-tropical Wyoming border. Until then, God bless & please pray for unity! Sam.
"The Lord is my shephard, I shall not be in want." Ps 23:1
ps: Cheers for the comments guys! I hope I answered your in depth question Tanner? :-)

A Wedding, Tornado & 2 Pistols (-5days)

2007-10-05T15:14:00.000-07:00

Hello from Kit Carson in Colorado! Sorry for missing last weeks entry; it was simply a matter of not being able to find internet. In the past 2 weeks I've crossed out of Texas into Oklahoma & then into Colorado. I'm now 7days into the Colorado plains & on target to arrive in Denver before the end of next week. A very big thank you to all the people of Texas who made my 1month crossing such a memorable one. It has to be one of the friendliest places on the planet! A big hello to the Sunray youth group who walked with me fora afew miles - I hope you found your car again. I crossed the Pan Handle of Oklahoma in around 24hrs but it was a 24hr stint that knocked me around somewhat. At the end of a 60km day I was walking into Boise City under the cover of night & watching an electrical storm roll past the northern side of the town. In the darkness I hadn't noticed a second front curling in behind me & with very little warning the wind picked up to around 80km/hr, the rain came thundering down (actually it was more 'across' than down) & the most spectacular lightning I've ever seen lit the sky up about every 1 to 2 seconds. Some lighting went down, some went up, & some sparked its way across the under belly of the clouds in a mesmorising stream of purple. And no matter how much I tried not to, I always instinctivly ducked every time it flashed above my head (apparently I'm taller in my mind than in real life). The wind was so strong at times that my back pack would act like a rudder & force me into a sudden rotation. My water proof cover was ripped off the bag at one point but because of the intense noise of the storm I had no idea that it was gone until I happened to spot a fluro yellow water proof cover clinging to a bush on the other side of the freeway... "Hey! It's just like mine!" The show stopping moment though was when a flash of lightning flashed in just the right spot to show up a tornado, spiriling down out of the clouds. It was a long way off but I still stopped where I was & peered into the darkness waiting for another flash in just the right place. A few seconds later it was lit up once more & I started hatching a plan for if it struck the ground & came in my direction. The only thing around was a storm water drain every 200m under the nearby railway line so I walked on with one eye on the tornado & one on the distance to the next storm water drain. The tornado headed in a different direction though & as far as I could tell, didn't hit the ground. At 11pm, with a hair style to rival Albert Einstein's, I arrived in Boise City. And smiled. It was a big week to be away from home as well. My youngest sister, Alexandra, was married on last Saturday to the fabulous Chris Hardinge & I was the only family member for about 7 generations not to attend. It was a somber night as I headed off to bed in a small country town in the USA knowing that the wedding was just about to get underway. I'm told it was a great day & evening. Congratulations Alex & Chris!That day was also the Australian Football League grand final & my team, the Geelong Cats, won their first premiership since 1963! I was born in 1979, so that means that I still haven't ever seen them win... Anyone tape it? I've met many fantastic people in the past week & have been shown some super hospitality, which has made the frantic pace I'm rolling along at a little more bearable. In a town called Springfield in south eastern Colorado I was walking to a hotel when I spotted a small church with a matching house next door. I stopped & had a moment of, "I should go & say hello & invite them to pray for unity but... I'm tired & want that hotel room." I felt the Lord gently encourage me to just do my job so I plodded over & met the pastor from the Quaker Church. We had a long chat & then as I was leaving a gentleman from across the road waved for me to come over. He & his wife were Pentecostal Preachers & wanted me to have dinner with them & to stay in their spare appartment. The meal was great & the conversation went far too long into the night, but was well worth the lethargy. Thank you Lord! My most unexpected evening however came when I walked from Springfield to Lamar over 2days. I was planning to camp out in my hammock for the night during the crossing but I had a small problem - no trees anywhere! I spotted a farm house in the distance with trees surrounding it so I made tracks for it & knocked on the door. Big Greg, the owner of a 30,000 acre ranch, answered the door in his shorts & had no problem with me tying my hammock up in his front yard. In fact, he had so little problem that he then fixed me a hot dinner & kept my glass full. His wife arrived home soon after & we spent a few hours talking at the kitchen table with a world globe in front of us as we exchanged stories. Now, the normal thing would be to then say goodnight & go to bed, however, that isn't how the night ended. At around 10:30pm, in the freezing cold of the Colorado evening, Greg & I made our way outside... & had target practise with his two pistols. I think I'm half deaf now in my left ear from all the shooting. The funny thing was that he set up a tin can in front of some logs & I sat a maple leaf a foot above it on the log. I had first shot & lined up his tin can... BANG! And the leaf went flying... It was a good thing it was dark & Greg couldn't see my confused expression. He had know idea that I was shooting for the tin can & so was mightily impressed that I'd just nailed a leaf from 20m. The pressure was on though for the second shot. This time there was no faking it. If I missed I couldn't claim to have been aiming for the log. I aimed a foot in front of the can & bam! Over it went. I felt like twirling the thing 'round & blowing across the barrell but felt that under the circumstances it was perhaps best just to hand it back to him & stay quiet. Last night I met a lapsed Christian called John who invited me back to his girlfriends place for dinner. We didn't 'have a shot' after the meal but we did talk about unity for a short while & then about the love of God. His father was once an Evangelical preacher & John had socked it up in his youth but had drifted from the church in his adult years. Once he got started though, it all came flooding back & it was as though he was falling in love with Christ all over again. At the end of the night I asked him to pray for me as I continued on & he replied, "I already have." Winter is on the way here in Colorado. The 1st snow fall is expected tomorrow night so it's time to sell the hammock I think. God bless & please keep praying! Sam
"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him." 1John4:16
ps: I've had more x-rays done on my hip & it has shown up very clearly as a badly rotated pelvis. In the process of having it put back in place. She'll be right mate :-)

Snake Attack & Meals with the locals (-8days)

2007-09-25T07:29:00.000-07:00

Hello from Amarillo in north west Texas! I'm enjoying a rest day today for the 1st time in a long time & have met some great folks here already. My last blog entry was from a town called Snyder where I almost had a heart attack upon leaving. As I left the town I was walking along the edge of a quite little road & very diligently peeling back the lid of my blueberry yogurt... so diligently infact that I didn't see the 5ft bull snake curled up in front of me! The first I saw of it was a flash of brown & the flip top, 180degree open, fangs protruding mouth as it launched itself through the air at my left knee. With a reflex jump into the air I sort of hurdled the rocketing snake, spun in the air & landed facing it as it smacked down on the road beneath me. I quickly backed away & it recoiled & began to puff itself up & hiss loudly. It missed me by about 1 inch & I think that Jackie Chan would have been proud of my 'jump & spin', not necessarily because I avoided being bitten, but simply because I didn't spill any yogurt! Now that would have been a bad start to my morning :-) As you can see from the photo, they are pretty well comouflaged against the roads here so it can be difficult to spot them as they warm up on the edge of the road. I've seen a lot more since then but well before they were flying through the air. I even spotted a young rattle snake which didn't seem too bothered with me being there so I spent a some time watching it. I placed my walking pole in close to its head & it quickly recoiled into a striking position & began to rattle its tail. That was all I wanted to see - 1st time I've seen the rattle in action! I left it alone from there (btw, any children reading this, do not place a walking pole in front of snake to make it do something - very dumb). I've now reduced my 15days behind schedule in order to cross the border on time to just 8days. My body is very sore though due to the extra distances. I had the sniffles for a little while as well. I slept in my hammock outside a highway bar (Jesse Jane's) enroute between two towns a large distance apart & just as I set my hammock up & jumped in it began to rain. Everything was soaked (including me) & so I didn't sleep particularly well. Consequently I've sniffled a little since. I think it's almost passed now though. This is beautiful country up here (minus snakes) & I've seen some enormous 3km trains pushing across the northern Texas plains & it's quite a sight. I've been very blessed to share some meals with many different locals along the path & I must extend a very big thankyou to the Spanish community in Plainview who took up a collection for me while I was eating elsewhere at someone's house. They payed for my accomodation & the next day's meals. Thanks guys! I also shared a meal with Rick, a Church of Christ preacher, & his beautiful family in a town called Happy - the town without a frown! That's for real... that's its slogan :-) A few hours after leaving Happy a fellow called Max Stevenson pulled up beside me with an array of angora socks. He'd been talking with Rick & figured I'd need some new socks! They're very comfy & bright red!! Theyr'e great, so thanks to Max from 'Bar S'. Everyday as I walk I pray as I trundle along but I set aside 1hr specifially to simply pray & 'be' with the Lord. On the 44km walk from Floydada to Plainview I was about 30minutes into my 'Me & God' time when an army vetran pulled over to see if I needed a lift. He was a faith-filled man & after hearing of what I was doing he offered to not only pray for unity but to pray for the next half an hour with me as he continued in his car. It was great to know that for the next 30mins someone else was interceeding with me. It really lifted me. And then, just to top it off, an hour later he pulled up beside me again, opened his car door & invited me to take a small rest & enjoy a meal with him that he'd bought at the next town. So we ate & chatted for more than just a small rest & then eventually headed our seperate ways again. All up though, I've been very blessed with the company of so many hospitable Texans. On the down side, 2 nights ago I stayed in a small hotel & channel-surfed the cable tv through all the various Christian stations. I was amazed at the array of teachings & preachings of the different stations & it unfortunately drove home even further the division amongst Christians. Over 30mins, this is just a sample of what I heared; "The Baptist Church is run by a board & that is not in the bible!" Interdenominational Preacher. "Hell does not exist & the bible is not the exact word of God." Pentecostal Preacher. "Hell is very real & the bible, the word of God, desribes it vividly!" Pentecostal Preacher. "The Holy Spirit whispered to me, 'I can get you money anywhere in the world'." & "The Lord wants to bless you with financial security, so if you send a $1000 deposit right now to the address on your screen you too can allow the Lord to bless you." Preacher Wisdom Centre Church. "We need to make attonment for our sins! Send a minimum of $60 to the address below & begin to make your attonement with God." Unknown Preacher. "The Catholic Church seeks to control your life." Pentecostal Preacher. "The Pentecostal Chruch is so legalistic." Evangelical Preacher. And so on, and so on... It was incredibly sad to watch the 'Public Face' of Christianity to the oustside world. The truth is not relative & we sure aren't making much of Christ's prayer in John 17 - "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me & have loved them even as you have loved me." If you are not already praying for unity, please join with the many thousands who are, particularly at 4:01pm each day. God bless & a big hello to everyone in Evelyn's history class! year 9.. That'd be all about the Middle Ages wouldn't it? I'll pray for you :-) See you next week! Sam.

No Food + No Water + No Room = No Worries (-11days)

2007-09-16T14:14:00.000-07:00

This past week I've headed further north to the 'Pan Handle' of northern Texas where the land is flat & the roads are long & straight. There are cotton fields everywhere & they stretch for miles in every direction. This is also home to the world's largest rattle snake population though to date I'm yet to see one! Mind you, I did step within a foot of a 5ft bull snake... close enough. I left Junction City last Monday morning & walked up to Menard & then further afield to a town called Eden. In Eden I stopped at the town library & met a lovely elderly woman called Ivy who was very welcoming & invited me to stay with her & her husband on their small farm just out of town. It was just like staying with my grandparents! It was great. They fussed over me & didn't stop talking the whole time. I just wish they'd waited until the other had stopped talking before beginning a new conversation. I had to keep on my toes! After dinner we stepped outside & Ivy walked me through the northern hemisphere astronomy, star by star, & so now I actually know what I'm looking at as I trundle along in the twilight hours. They sent me on my way the next morning with freshly washed clothes, a bag full of food & a request for notification upon completing the walk. I headed on towards the town of Paint Rock & was filled with anticipation as a close friend from Australia was flying into Housten & driving up to visit me on the road for a couple of days. He was also bringing with him new socks (see the old pair in the photos to the right) & a new book to chew through. I spent the entire day looking over my shoulder wondering how much longer it would be until he pulled up alongside me but as it was, I arrived at Paint Rock well ahead of him. There was only one store so I bought a lot of food & waited... & waited. By night fall I was concerned as to where he was but with no phone in this small country town I had no way to contact him. A kind local allowed me to use their internet & at 9:30pm we finally made contact - after 6months of planning we'd stuffed up big time with our communication (where I was exactly) & he wasn't going to be able to make it. It was very disappointing. I trudged down through the darkness to the Paint Rock picnic ground to set up my hammock. The picnic area was spider infested & dark & because of my not-so-good mood I packed my bag up & hit the road to walk through to the next hotel some 30km away. I marched the whole way there without taking a single stop & roled into the hotel at 2am. Time to sleep. The next day I was still 'not pleased' with not having seen Damian but I at least had the rest of the day to slow down as I was already at 'todays' destination. Later that day I met Fr Wade & Fr Bob, two ex-servicemen who had given their lives to the church & their hospitality was extremely 'blokey' & relaxed but always Christ-centred. I loved it. Holy has never looked so real :-) I made my way further north from there to a town called Wingate. I'd only walked a kilometre though when a Sheriff's car pulled up behind me & I was asked to explain myself. Apparently someone had seen me (a stranger) walking down to the road & so... rang the police. I was free to continue but it wasn't the last I'd see of the sheriff's department for the day. 7miles out from Wingate I ran out of water & so stopped at a farm house alongside the road & rang the door bell. There was no answer so I continued on but 15min later another Sheriff's car was behind wanting to know why I was ringing someone's doorbell. I explained & the sheriff laughed. He then threw me a bottle of water. Thankyou! Wingate was a lot quieter than I had hoped for. In fact the grocery store, cafe, bank & post office had all closed down leaving only... a cotton storage shed. As it was already the evening twilight I decided to hitch a lift to a town some 20km away to get food & water & then return to put my hammock up, but after standing on the edge of the road for a minute I decided to swallow my pride & just knock on someone's door. I walked right to the edge of town until I saw the very last house, which looked 'welcoming'. I knocked & enquired of the elderly gentleman if it would be ok if I strung my hammock up in his front yard for the night. He was more than happy for me to do so & even helped me put it up. I was then invited inside the house of Mr & Mrs Poehls who shouted me a Dr Pepper & some smoked venison. I still had few muslie bars in my bag as well so they made up the rest of dinner. After a lengthy & animated chat with the Poehls I nestled into my hammock underneath the Texas stars. Their guard dog came over for a visit so I threw him some smoked venison that I still had & all of a sudden I was his new best friend. So much so that he slept beside me for the night & snored the whole way. Ocaisionally he'd wake up & poke his head up over my hammock, resting his head on my belly, & moan, presumably wanting more venison? Then he'd rest back on the ground & continue snoring. By 5:30am I was ready to hit the road again. The guard dog trotted down the road with me for a good distance but we finally parted company & I was going solo once more. With a full container of water but only a tiny amount of food it was an intersting walk to Sweetwater. I trusted God that he wouldn't leave me hanging & simply walked on. As the sun rose I found myself walking & praying through the largest wind generation tower array I've ever seen. Wind turbines filled the landscape from east to west & up to the north. I was in complete awe of these massive turbines & most likely walked for 20km with my mouth open. Apparently it's the world's largest array. I ran out of food & water at around 12pm & I was in the middle of nowhere. I stopped at an intersection & looked down the roads wondering where they led to. A fellow drove up beside me & asked me if I needed help. I explained my situation & he offered to drive me to a remote restaraunt set up for the wind turbine workers & then to return me to the intersection to continue walking. Mr Dale Finch drove me 4miles to an outpost town called Nolan where he bought me lunch, organised for someone to take me back to the intersection & then headed on his way. Lunch was great & then the owner came & gave me the money Dale had used to pay for the meal. I got to chat with all the locals there about what I was doing & Mary (the towns 'grandmother') was very passionate about praying for unity. A farmer drove me back to the road & I continued on into Sweetwater feeling very blessed from my unplanned trip to Nolan. Yesterday I moved on to a town called Hermleigh, where there was nowhere to sleep once again & so I perched myself up in the football stadium & slept there. It was uncomfortable. Oh, and I couldn't find the stadium in the dark to begin with so I asked a fellow who was sitting up on the back of his truck if he knew where it was. He just sat there & didn't reply. Turns out 'he' was a gas cylinder - no wonder he was tight lipped... Oh well, can't win them all. Today I am in Snyder & after arriving just in time for mass, I've been invited to spend the afternoon & evening with parishoners Scotty, Wendy & family. I am exceptinonally sore from pushing to make up for the extra 15 days (now at 11) but the hospitality of the Texans & constant prayer are keeping me motivated. The weather has been cooler than normal (high 20's) & with autumn setting in it's finally becoming a tadmore comfortable day in day out. Plese pray for me & particularly for Christian unity. 4:01. God bless, Sam.
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me." John 14:1

Pushing the limits, toilet comfort & wilder beast (-13days)

2007-09-08T11:31:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone & welcome to the weekly update! I'm in Junction City in central Texas after a limit pushing 166km in the past 3 days. The crossing from Uvalde to Junction was scheduled to take 5days but I pushed through in 3days in order to bring the 'days behind' back to 13 (in order to cross the USA/Canada broder on time - please see last blog entry). Trekking over 50kms each day hurt but the solitude & scenery was quite something else. I began in Uvalde after being hosted by 3 Terese of Avilla sisters whose hospitality & youthfullness was infectious. As I headed out of town I stopped into a grocery store to pick up my 24hrs worth of supplies & happened to run into a lady by the name of Betty Fitzgerald. Betty had seen me walking the day before & so enquired about the mission. As quick as a flash she was on the phone & within a few minutes the local newspaper was on the spot to report on the Aussie passing through. Betty was lovely & after the interview set me on my way with a first aid pack with lots of little goodies such as a new razor, deoderant, shaving cream & face washer. Once on the road I had a pleasant walk through green sprawling farms until I came to something that is a bit of a hidden jewel in the Texas landscape - The Hill Country. I couldn't believe it; the farms & ranches gave way very suddenly to an abrupt hill range that was covered in elms, oaks & silver birches. The rivers were flowing fast & clear & the air was crisp. By 9:30pm I finally made it to Garner State Park where I'd been told I could hire a cabin for the night. Unfortunately I arrived after closing time & so there was no one to be found anywhere. With a wild boar looking on from within the forest off to the side I wasn't too keen to set my hammock up & so I searched & found the only cabin with an ensuit... well, most people would call it the public toilet, but beggars can't be choosers! It sounds worse than it actually was. The State Park office had a disabled toilet ajoining it & it was spacious, very clean & air conditioned! I set my survival bag (glorified plastic bag) down on the floor, filled it with my clothes & placed my sleeping bag on top. I locked the door & slept uncomfortably, but safely, for the night. I wasn't able to turn the air conditioner off but it was simply a matter of reaching up & tapping the hand dryer & I'd get a blast of warm air when needed... Anyway, I hit the road at 6am, making sure I was away before anyone discovered me. Under the very watchful eyes of that wild boar I left the State Park & headed north along I83 & past by a few more wild boar before sunrise. I arrived in Leakey in time for breakfast & discovered from the locals that in fact those hills contain more than just wild boar - mountain lions, black panthers, bears & squirrels. You really have to watch out for those squirrels. Nasty temper :-) So in the end I was happy to have only seen the wild boars. From there I headed into no man's land up even higher, following some magnificent mountain streams until I was walking along the plateau through ranches that are used for exoctic hunting. At 8:30pm I made it to the one & only shop on the 99km stretch between Leakey & Junction to find it closed. All I had was two muesli bars so dinner wasn't looking promising. I found a place to hang my hammock on the shop's verandah but thought I'd better ask for permission first. I found the owners home (the only house for 99km, wasn't difficult) & thank the Lord, he was a straight down the line, Texas gentleman with a beer in one hand & remote control in the other. "You want to sleep at the store? Sure! No worries. Hang on a minute & I'll grab my keys & open the sotre up for you. You must have a sure big appetite!?" So to Vince at the Galvin Store, thank you! I ate well & I slept well in my hammock. Yesterday morning I finished the crossing with another painful 55km haul. I saw about 10 different species of deer but the show stopping moment was when I realised I was being watched from the bushes by 3 wilder beast. There was a huge fence between us so no threat or anything but I stopped & looked at these animals & wondered why on earth I was looking at an icon of Africa on a Texas ranch. A rancher happened to stop by just to say hello & so I asked him if they were in fact wilder beast, "Yes sir" he said, "and they got Giraffe & Zebras as well." As I walked on down the road trying to spot a zebra it did cross my mind that perhaps the ranch was owned by Michael Jackson... You never know. Over 55km yesterday I saw about 40 ranches & only 5 cows. Times have changed. I've checked into a small hotel here in Junction City & will continue north towards the Oklahoma/Colorado border tomorrow morning. It's three & a half weeks away but I hope to be there sooner. The folks here have been very supportive in praying for unity & often comment on how difficult they believe it would be for all Christians to unite in theology, however, they are very happy & humbled to pray for complete unity for God's glory. Please join in praying each day (particularly at 4:01) & I'll hopefully 'see' you all next week from the city of Sweetwater. God bless, Sam.
"Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, & with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace." Ephesians 6:14-15

Farewell Nikki, Dislodged Hip, Border Security & the 15days

2007-09-04T18:25:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the late entry! I normally have an entry up each Sunday however today is the 1st day since leaving Monterrey that I've found internet. To begin with, as the heading suggests, it is time to say farwell to Nikki Harris who is right now, comfortably sitting at home in Newcastle, Australia! Nikki had made the decision to head home a month ago due to financial reasons (no money) & the desire to further other missionary fields. I haven't said anything until now because Nikki wanted to suprise her family with her return & so we've kept it under wraps until now. It's incredible how fast those few months crossing Mexico went, even though it didn't feel fast at the time. I hope you've settled in well back home & are feeling rested Nik! Thankyou so much for your support, your prayers & for laughing at my jokes. It felt bizzare to walk that first day alone & I have to admit, a few times I did do a shoulder check to see how far back Nikki was... whoops. By the end of the day though I was back into the swing of making my own decisions & walking the beat solo. At the end of the 1st day I met 2 young guys who'd run out of petrol & after a long conversation they gave me a present - a Monterrey soccer shirt with it's major sponser, the local bread printed across the front - BIMBO! Straight to the pool room. I'd been having some back problems for the few days leading up & it wasn't until that night that I realised what the problem was. I checked out the sore part of my back in the mirror & found that my left hip was sticking out of my back by a good 2cm. I thought, "Oh, that's not good" & made plans to return to Monterrey to find a hospital. After 2 hospitals & many specialists they eventually concluded that an injury of this nature could only be caused by a serious accident & thus couldn't have been caused by me jarring my back those 3 or 4 days earlier. I tried to explain that my back as never had a hip bone sticking out of it but they discharged me none the less. That was 7days ago & it's still giving me a lot of pain but I'm walking so... I'll just learn to live with a 'hippy' back. I spent two days resting my hip in Monterrey with a group of young Missionaries before catching the bus to catch up on the lost days. Before I left though, not impressed with my new socer shirt, they gave me 2 more shirts of their favourite teams!! Anyone want to buy an authentic Mexican soccer shirt? I crossed the Mexican/USA border on Thursday but getting through Border Security was a lot more difficult than I had anticipated. After a long wait at the counter they asked me to please come through to the back where they walked me into an interrigation room, conducted a body search & then proceeded to ask over an hour's worth of questions with 2 armed soldiers standing over me. At one point the interviewer left the room & waked back in fitting on blue rubber gloves. He gave the final glove a bit of flick on his wrist as he walked in & I didn't mean to, but I very loudly blurted out, "Oh no!" The guy looked at me a little confused & then said, "No, no, I need to search your bags." Wow, I don't know if I've ever been so releaved. In my bag I carry a note book & for those who don't know me, I write film scripts in my spare time & wouldn't you know it, I'd written notes in my notebook on a script I'd headed, "The Shot" & right next to it I'd penned some notes for another script, which involves people such as, let's say, George Bush... Now that took some explaining!! By the way, "The Shot" is a camera shot not a gun shot. Thankfully they believed me & eventually I had my passport stamped & I was free to pass. It was a confusing 90minutes. While getting my passport though something dawned on me that had not entered my often ditracted mind until that point - I have budgeted for 105 days to cross the USA & my visa is only for 90 days. So... the story now is that I have 90 days to cover 105days worth of walking. And I was looking forward to the USA! As a consequence I'm currently sitting 15days behind schedule & will need to rapidly make up those days before it's out of reach. My walk to here, Uvalde, 218km north of the border has been at a frantic pace but very blessed. My first night I walked into the night trying to make up lost time & at 10pm said to the Lord that, if it was ok, I'd walk up to 'that sign' about 1km ahead on a deserted country road & then need to rest. The sign wasn't anything special but at the base of it was a smaller sign with an arrow pointing down into a paddock. It read, "RV Park". I wondered what on earth an RV Park was but upon peering through the trees spotted some caravans & thought, "Oh! An RV Park... of course." (for those not from Australia, we call them caravan parks) So down I went, met the owners as they were locking up & secured some hanging space for my hammock plus the shower facilities. Apart from the howling coyotes during the night & the red ants that made a nest in my backpack for their 100,000 strong community, I was off again the next morning for a huge 55km day to... a picnic area where I once again slept in my hammock to the sound of howling coyotes. I've met some of the most wonderful people here in Texas & I'm really enjoying meeting & praying with them. I have plenty of time for prayer these days with me being alone once more & with the extended length of the days. It has rained the whole time I've been here. In fact they've just finished their wettest summer ever. Due to the constant rain my feet are not looking great. They have turned black from the black tanning agent in my leather boots & the constant water has caused the skin to litterally wear off one of my toes. It doesn't look good at all. Quite disgusting actually. Never-the-less, I walk & I pray & I am blown away each day by the generous hearts who live here. Yesterday was a sad day though. I arrived in a very small town just as they were gathering to remember a 14yr old girl, Marina, who had been accidently shot & killed by her 18yr old brother. It was horriffic for the family & community to deal with & after a memorial service at the school we all gathered in the church to pray. Please keep the family, particularly Marina & her brother, in prayer. That's about it for now - oh, thanks to Tanner (an oil exploration & legalities officer) who shouted me a night in a great hotel & bought me a Texas Long-Horns cap! The cap fits... So, as I was sayign, that's about it for now. Please keep praying for unity - that all those who have faith would be united in truth & in love, & please say one for me as well as I head north, now 15days behind schedule. God bless, Sam.
"Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the word of his servant? Let him who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God." Isiah 50:10

Arrival in Monterrey & Providence along the way

2007-08-26T17:59:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, this time from Monterrey in northern Mexico! If anyone out there still remembers the 'end of the school year' feeling, that's a little how I'm feeling right now. After nearly 10months on the road I'm now within 5 days of crossing out of Latin America into western culture! I'm looking forward to crossing into US soil but it's also a little daunting to think that for the first time in 10 months I'll be able to speak english, I'll be able to understand everything people are saying to me & I'll be able to read the road signs. I could possibly have 'culture shock' in heading back into my own culture! I'm speaking more & more Spanish as well so it's a little sad to leave before learning 'enough' of the language (however much that is). This week Nikki & I averaged well over 40km a day & we are feeling the pinch a little now. The scenery was breathe-taking though & we met some great characters along the way. The Lord provided for us with a roof a number of times when it looked doubtful that anything would become available. On Monday we stayed in an empty chapel, which wasn't overly comfortable (Nikki had my hammock & I had the concrete floor... owwww). Then on Tuesday we stopped under a tree for a bite to eat when all of a sudden the house behind us became frantic with people running everywhere as they tried to kill a rattle snake that had ended up in their living room! We watched in amazement as they swept the snake out with a broom & then... disposed of it. At that point, without warning, heavy rain started to fall & as we gathered our gear together the family, still standing over the 'disposed of snake', called us inside to shelter. The father was an American citizen & Pentecostal preacher & after a great chat, we stayed for dinner & were offered the spare beds! Then on Wednesday, after a huge 52km day, we finished in the dead of night at a town with no church & no hotel. Actually, I couldn't see many people either. Nikki had been praying for somewhere to stay & so I asked the Lord, "Ok, what's the deal? Where are we staying?" A building off to my right hand side caught my eye & I felt the Lord say, "You're here". So, Nikki & I wandered over to the darkened, lifeless, closed building & as we did, a man walked out from the back & through the side fence. He was a Police officer & had just knocked off work. We chatted for a moment & he happily invited us to travel the 40km back to his place for the night & then he would drop us back first thing in the morning. Great stuff! Thankyou Officer Hector! I've found this week a little 'heavy' as I've walked. Although there is predominantly a huge welcoming from people of all walks of faith to pray for each other that we'd be united completely in Christ, there has also been the odd rejection. I've found it difficult to swallow that praying for each other to be united in Christ is even an obstacle at all. The question of 'why?' has popped up a lot this week. In the end though, I can only keep walking & keep praying. Christ implored us to pray for our enemies, so praying for other Christians should surely be within our limits. My favourite moment from this week though had to be the communities of Gophers we passed along a 50km stretch of highland plains. They were very inquisitive & consistantly called out to one another as we approached. I'm not sure if the farmers appreciated all the holes though. There are also a lot more snakes in this area, one of which was slithering down along the edge of the road next to where I needed to walk. A few accurately looped stones to the left of its head & it kindly headed right & off the road into the grass, where 5ft black snakes belong. Walk on. I hope everyone back in Australia enjoys the last week of winter & I look forward to seeing everyone soon (11months actually). Oh, & to anyone who has sent me an email & is waiting for a reply - I currently have 128 unread emails, so please be patient! I'm plugging away slowly. God bless & please pray on! Sam.
"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching & to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread & to prayer." Acts 2:42

'Rattle Snakes & Cactus' and the 81km

2007-08-18T16:18:00.000-07:00

Hello once again, this time from Matehuela, Mexico. Nikki & I are both in good health & continuing to walk & pray for unity. We have travelled far into northern Mexico & the scenery is constantly changing around us. Up until yesterday I thought that I wouldn't have a great deal to write about. The only thing of real note was an incredible thunder storm that swept across a plain & competely saturated us for the final 5km of that day. Oh, & the passing of the strawberry & cream highway stands from last week to the rattle snake & cactus stalls of this week. Bizzare. And yes, the 'rattlers' were for eating... I'll have a cactus thanks! Other than that it was a 'quiet' week of slogging it out from town to town & the daily chores that go with it. That is of course until yesterday. It began as normal; 4:30am alarm, 5am wake up holding alarm... & then hit the road under the cover of morning darkness. After only a kilometre or so Nikki & I rounded a small hill to be met by an amazing sight - car headlights stretching in a dead straight line all the way to the horizon. That was one very straight piece of road & it was home for the day. In fact, the other end of the road was some 60km away, so a car that appeared on the horizon with it's lights gleaming stayed in view for well over half an hour before flying past at 100hm/hr. Traffic was intense even for that time of day & so the darkness of the night was split in half by this pin-straight flickering fire light of car headlights. Nikki & I were scheduled to walk 42km for the day & back it up today with another 42km to Matehuela. However, after tipping 45km, we still hadn't found a place to stay & the locals were all indicating that we wouldn't until Matehuala itself. Nikki was struggling with leg soreness & so travelled on ahead by truck to secure accomodation at 'the first hotel'. I wasn't sure how much further I would walk, but eventually I would also need to find a lift or sleep on the side of the freeway with the living 'rattlers'. 50km came & went, then a sign marking the Tropic of Cancer & then sunset. Not sure of how far I would be walking I kept drinking more & more water to ensure a repeat of 2 weeks ago didn't eventuate. The night time walking was pleasant & once again I could see the stretch of car headlights, but this time from the other end of the road. Some of you may remember a certain day back in February when I walked 66km & came face to face with a Puma in the dead of night. That night pushed me on many levels & for only the second time in my life I once again visited kilometre 66. Although there were no Puma's about it felt strange to push on past that mark into 'new ground'. Praying & singing the whole time my body began to hurt less & less & after 73km I eventually pulled in to a service station to restock my food & water supplies, which had just run out. Nikki was carrying our money & I had only a $20 note in my backpack hip pocket, but it would be enough to feed me for the moment. Twice that evening I had been offered either water or food from people as I passed by & a packet of donated biscuits had ended up in the same hip pocket. On arriving at the petrol station I discovered that the note was no more! I must have pulled it out with the biscuit packet at some point & so it's probably still sitting alongside the freeway somewhere. Oh the agony! A shop full of food, a stomach with none & no money. To rub salt into the wound, I was busting to go to the toilet & in order to open the door I had to pay $2... I had $1. A moment of staring at the door in disbelief & I turned & continued walking, praying even more for the unity of all Christians & also for the faith of the Mexican people. It was another 7km to the hotel (or so a sign told me) so, with my body still working (apart from an angry stomach) I walked on through to kilometre 81 &, much to my delight, discovered that Nikki was there (fast asleep in bed) & I had a great little room waiting for me. It was now 2:30am. After having a substantial dinner I finally slinked into bed at 4am, 23hours after waking up. I'm very thankful for being able to finish of the final 3km into the city centre this afternoon & apart from muscle soreness, all is well. Only an hour ago I had $50 stolen from right under my nose so that ticked me off to no end but such are the obstacles in this 'race'. Tomorrow morning we head north for the final stretch to Monterrey city, which we are hoping to cove in 9 days or less. Please pray for unity (for truth & love) & I hope you have a beautiful week! God bless, Sam.
ps: A few times in prayer this week (and in particular in praying for unity with those I may not currently be 'united' with) I was reminded of something my mate Simon once said to me. It was a simple encouragement to always defend people behind their back. And, as Paul wrote;
"Remind the people to be subject to rulers & authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, & to show true humility toward all men." Titus 3:1-2

Saved by Scarpa, Racing Heart Rate & a Dead Dog

2007-08-11T16:14:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Santa Maria del Rio! An interesting week to say the least & my boots have played a major role a few times. This is stunning countryside Nikki & I are walking through - stark mountains, cactus everywhere, farmers on donkies - but the walk very nearly came to an end a few days ago. For the last four days in a row we've been unable to find accomodation in our destinations & have thus been shipped off to neighbouring towns for the night before returning the next morning to resume the walk. On one particular evening after completing our scheduled walk Nikki & I needed to walk an extra 6km off the main road to a rural hotel. A few kilometres down the road we managed to thumb a lift. Nikki jumped in the front but as I was trying to squeeze myself into the back seat the young driver impatiently took off with my right foot still firmly planted on the ground. The movement forward caused my foot to lift slightly such that the sole of my boot was now facing the rear tyre & in a split second the car mounted my boot with me being contorted & pulled out of the car. Thank the Lord his Dodge didn't have enough power to get all the way over my boot & onto my ankle & with Nikki & I yelling at him to stop he depressed the clutch & the car roled backwards & back to the road! Incredibly my Scarpa boot somehow managed to hold steady with a car parked on top of it & I literally walked away with nothing more than a dusty trye mark imprinted on it. My knee is still a tad sore from the twisting motion but other than that, walk on. In other news, earlier in the week I had a nasty experience after pushing too hard at the end of a long day. Nikki was suffering from massive leg pain & so caught the bus to our destination after completing 40km of the day's 53km. Me, in my stupidity, decided to take on a challenge of increasing the normal km rate to finish off the final 13km in 2hours rather than the expected 2&half hours. Especially after having already walked 40km that day it was not a moment of wisdom. I knocked off the final 13km in 1hr & 50min but my glee soon turned into 'whoops' as my body went into melt-down. I'd pushed too hard & now my heart rate was soaring (200bpm) & my temperature rising. It took nearly 2hours to get everything under control & to a point where I could stand up without feeling faint. It was dumb on my behalf, so, note to self; 13km can be covered in less than 2hrs but is seriously stupid to attempt. DO NOT ATTEMPT. My boots have also been involved in a nasty incident of a different kind that nearly saw me throttled to death by Nikki. While searching for spot to sit down & eat lunch along side the road I accidently trod smack-bang in the middle of a dead dog that had been festering for at least 6months. I laughed it off but Nikki was mortified. We eventually found a nice little spot (away from the dead dog) & Nikki placed her backpack on the ground. Unbeknownst to her, the mouth piece of her water bladder had slipped down onto the ground & then I, not looking, stepped on it, leaving a dirty great big 'dead dog' foot print all around & over it. Nikki's reaction was, well, priceless. My reaction was to rapidly apologise & then assist in washing it by providing water from my water bladder. I removed the mouth piece to increase the flow of water but I misjudged the force at which it would exit the nozzle & instead of wetting her mouth piece the water shot straight over the top & into her open backpack... ouch. Some days just go from bad to worse. I retired from humanitarian work for the day at that point. Anyone else want to walk with me? Poor Nikki. I'm currently in the market for a new pair of socks after leaving my 2nd pair on a clothes line at a priest's house but I'm not having much success - size 16 socks aren't sold here. I'm having to wash my one & only pair every evening & hope that they'll be dry by morning. Also, one of my walking poles is struggling badly. The tungsten tip fell off & the plastic it was protecting is no match for the bitumen roads & is lossing a few mm every day. I'm hoping it will stay long enough for me to reach the USA where I should be able to find a replacement. As I mentioned earlier, the scenery here is amazing - very typically Mexican. We are still, however, having trouble with the locals who refuse most often than not to return our greeting. People stare at us all day long as we walk & if we say hello or good morning they either continue to stare or quickly look away as though they've been snapped out of a trance. In a moment that was straight out of a Hollywood film this afternoon, Nikki & I walked through the towns main square while a huge Mexican ensemble played a very upbeat tune with the locals looking on. As the tune came to a thunderous end not a single clap was to be heard. Instead, every single pair of eyes (including the members of the ensemble) was wide-eyed as they followed us across the square. It was a little unnerving. I smiled at one guy & said hello but he then looked confused & turned to his mate beside him for what I think was moral support. I'm pretty sure a pigeon taking off was the only movement apart from the two Aussies. So, that's been my week. I hope yours was dead-dog free & painless. Please continue (or begin) to pray for an increase of love & truth so that all people of faith may be united in Christ. God bless & peace be with you! Sam
"May the Lord make your love increase & overflow for each other & for everyone else, just as ours does for you." 1 Thessalonians 3:12

Mexico City, Alltitude & Brian

2007-08-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

Hello from Teculopan! Population: Well, that depends on how many truckies have stopped for dinner... Another week has come & gone & so has Mexico City. A very cool & steep climb took us up to around 4000m above sea level before we descended into the expansive city. I have to say, I didn't see the poverty I expected to. A lot of work has gone into housing developments & so the slums I expected to see everywhere were actually difficult to find along the route we walked. The pollution however, was not difficult to find - it was difficult to escape. I saw one bloke riding his bike with a gas mask on, not a dust mask, but a full-on gas mask. I wouldn't have minded borrowing it at the time either. There was a horrible smell around that reminded me of rotting flesh & sewage in one. It was in truth difficult to breathe. Thankfully it only took three days to cross the city & Nikki & I are now trekking along through beautiful rolling farmland with a gentle cool & clean breeze blowing the whole time, although Nikki is currently having to grit her teeth a bit & push through some pretty major foot/leg/everything pain. My only problem is that my body is so used to walking through stupidly hot weather & the consequent constant sweating that now I'm in nice cool weather, well, my body isn't sweating out what I drink. If I have to take another toilet break Nikki is going to punch a hole in my water container! Nikki celebrated her 25th birthday in Mexico City in style with a few chocolates & a massive lollie-pop but that was about the extent of it. For those following the walk with an itinerary at hand, I'm no longer walking from Mexico City to Monterrey via the route outlined, instead, I'm heading inland up through the centre of Mexico along the major freeway. It turns out this route, though appearing longer on the map is actually shorter (and safer). So from here I head to San Jose del Rio & then straight up through the centre. We are currently 107km down the freeway & the hospitality has been super! The thinner air up here has made it difficult to sing or even make cow noises at the cows... so I've been given an opportunity to pray a lot more. There are many death markers along the side of the road here so I find myself praying for them & particularly for their family left behind. More & more as well I'm praying for & thinking about the unity of all people of faith. Particularly about my continual need for a deepening of coversion, humilty & God's mercy. Nikki & I still get heckled every now & then but that's all part of the deal these days. On one particular day I received a passing slur by a fellow driving a car with a 'Jesus' sticker on the back. I thought to myself, "Your actions are speaking louder than your 'word' mate." My mind heads off on tangents very easily & I quickly found myself remembering a conversation I had with a fellow called Brian Shadbolt 2 years ago at my grandfathers funeral. I grew up on Flinders Island & Brian & his wife Maureen owned the farm down the road from us. I hadn't seen him for quite some time (& haven't seen him since) but we walked & chatted as we made our way down through the cemetery. I noted that I'd only recently discovered that he was a Christian (& had been since before I was born) & this made Brian laugh. He was almost embarassed that I didn't know; that it wasn't obvious. In fact I think his words were along the lines of, "That's not good at all!" But here's the deal, Brian didn't have a Jesus sticker on his ute or wear a huge flashy gold chain with a cross on it but if there was one couple on the island who, as a child, I trusted & looked up to, it was Brain & Maureen. I wasn't keen on getting too close to his beard as a kid but over time I grew to love Brian being around because he was always happy. Always. His actions spoke louder than any words could. And then, as if to make my day complete, I logged on to the website & checked the prayer list & there at number 154 was Brian & Maureen. His actions are still speaking louder than his laugh. I hope you're both well! I've also found time to check up on the Australian Football results & I'm very pleased to see that my team, the Geelong Cats, are on top of the ladder by a mile! Sorry about your Tigers Luke. The walk continues & so does the prayer, "Father, please unite all people of faith in truth and in love." God bless, Sam.
You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. James 2:22

Snow in Mexico, an apology & chicken

2007-07-28T16:00:00.000-07:00

Hello from Mexico! How's your part of the world? Mine's new, as usual. We're officially in the highlands of Mexico after a monster 45km day that took us from a few hundred metres above sea level to over 2000m in one day. We began in the Cordoba/Orizaba Valley, which has to be on of the most beautiful places I've walked through so far. It was green, clean, mountainous, cool & the people were so friendly that it crossed my mind that it might be a nice place to retire... Ahead of us rose Mexico's highest mountain, Orizaba Peak, some 5000m high. Even here in hot Mexico it had a huge cover of snow on it. It was incredible. At first we had a reasonable climb up what we thought was our mountain for the day but after a good hour or so we emerged on a plateau with a briliant view of where we'd come from & a rather confronting view of another mountain on the other side of the plains that rose up another 1000m - and the freeway went straight up it (well, through a few tunnels & around a few hundred corners). The higher we pushed on the thinner the air became & the more difficult it was to breath. It almost caused me to shut up for two minutes, but I found enough oxygen to keep singing & praying :-) Seriously though, it was tough on the lungs climbing up but the spectacular views & racing clouds hitting the mountain below us & scooting up over us was amazing. Our day finished after sunset, walking across the plains at the foot of the 5000m high snow capped Volcano glistening in the moon light. Loved it. Nikki & I have stopped in many churches this past week & the invitation to pray for unity has been received very well. We even meet a few people who are saving their pennies to fly to Australia in 2008 for World Youth Day so we are hoping to find each other come next July! It could be a hard task finding them amongst 2 million people though. I read the comments each week (thanks Steph) & I'd like to quickly clear the air over the comment I made last week about my resolve for unity being stronger now than when I started & the Lord's heart being for unity. At first I didn't understand the rebuke over this comment & it has taken me some time to get my head around what Miguel wrote. I say that I don't completly understand the rebuke because my comment was simply intended as a reflection on my deepening of faith over the duration of this journey & the utter hopelessness I've felt at seeing so many underpriviledged people suffering, coupled with the infighting amongst churches. I was stating that now, having seen what I've seen & heard what I've heard, the scriptures regarding unity (from the Gospels & Paul's letters particularly) are coming alive for me. My resolve is stronger - I believe. After thinking long & hard about the rebuke & reading over what I'd written I presume that due my laziness at the keyboard it can very easily read as though I'm stating that the Lord's heart is for MY style of unity. This was not intended in any way, shape or form & I'm sorry for not not taking more care with what I was writing. I agree with you Miguel & I'm very sorry if what I wrote frustrated you. The whole aim of this walk is to simply come before the Lord humbly & continue to pray Christ's prayer (John 17) for total unity. I haven't been blessed with the wisdom to unite the faith world but I have been blessed with prayer, so this is my role out here on the road; to pray & bear witness. So, my humblest apologies for cutting corners. Hmmm, now comes the tricky part of linking this to my next point of conversation, which was to be about Nikki almost choking to death on her chicken piece after I recounted a funny incident from Honduras... nope, can't think of a link-in, better move on. In typical Walk4one style, Nikki & I came within a whisker of being here illegally (& being sent home) after encountering visa troubles, which, after a few days of trying, were finally sorted out an hour after expiring. So technically we were 'illegals' for one hour. That's my claim anyway. It was a relief to finally get it sorted out. It's a complicated tale that's not particularly interesting, just lots of wrong information, an immigration department mistake & no one to sign off on the paper work. So, with our new visa expiring two months after I intend to cross over the border it's on towards Mexico City over the next 3 days with another 1000m climb ahead (we think). Please continue to pray for unity & a very big thankyou to everyone who sent my mum a brithday greeting - she wasn't overly impressed with me, but loved the emails.
God bless! Sam.
"He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, & reveals his thoughts to man, he who turns dawn to darkness, & treads the high places of the earth — the LORD God Almighty is his name." Amos 4:13

Pig Massage & other odd days

2007-07-21T14:00:00.000-07:00

On this, my day off in Tierra Blanca, I can't help but think that it was an odd week on the road, walking & praying for unity. Nikki & I covered a massive 396km in 11days to make it this rest day & although nothing like the 'big' incidents of the past few months cropped up, it was certainly a very tough physical & mental stretch. We twice walked over 50km in a day this past week & with the hot Mexican sun bearing down on us it made for some 'gritting of the teeth' days. In a rather bizzare moment, we were caught in a passing storm early one monring & took shelter in a half-collapsed palmleaf-roofed bus stop outside a farm. Within a short space of time were were suddenly joined by a massive pig also looking to shleter from the rain. It wasn't fussed with our presence but took an instant smell-liking to our bag of food & proceeded to try & eat it's way through our bags, boots & walking poles! It just wouldn't stop & it was too big to just push away. Eventually I stopped trying to push it away & instead sratched it behind the ear. Well, the great lump of pork that it was pretty much collapsed on the spot. It closed it's eyes & let me scratch away. I couldn't help myself so I moved on to its shoulder's & gave it the best massage it'll ever get! I'm pretty sure it actually fell asleep. The life of a Mexican pig... On many occasions this past week we have been warned of the dangers along the roads here. People have been very graphic in their discriptions of assaults & other unpleasantries but to date, other than the usual heckling from passers by, the people have been beautiful. I ripped my walking shirt so replaced it with the local Mexican football team shirt. I met some young guys on the side of the road in a forest village & commented to one of the guys (who was wearing the same football shirt) that I should've bought the one he was wearing as it had a collar. I'd only gone another hundred metres down the road when that young guy, a complete stranger, ran up to me and took his shirt off, handing it over to me. He simply said, "It's yours", and ran back up the winding road, shirtless. So, I have two Chivas footy shirts now because a young bloke literally gave me the shirt off his back. On another occasion Nikki & I were passing by an Evangelical Church in a small rural outpost when the guy living next door, seeing that we were checking the church out, waved to us to come over to him. He & his family were members of the church & upon hearing what we were doing, insisted on us staying for lunch. I was more than happy to park myself at the dinner table & we ate & chatted for an hour & a half. We finished by gathering on the front verandah & praying for each other & for unity. By the way, everyone is invited to his daughter's wedding in November if you're passing through :-) And finally, to top off the hospitality, in the middle of nowhere & having walked more than our due distance for the day, I asked a farmer who had just stepped out of a paddock ahead of me if there was anywhere to stay nearby. He nodded & said, "Yes, my home. Come!" And so we did, to a three room bush hut in a small isolated village called Ninos Heroes (it's not even on my map). I got the wood plank bed & Nikki got the hammock next to the parrot & rooster. It was a meek living but the farmer, his wife & their two daughters were great hosts & giving in every sense of the word. Just don't ask Nikki about the long drop. Just don't. I reckon if you lit a match near it you'd wipe out half of Mexico. It was great though to see that despite the fear many of the locals had for our safety, it was counter-acted by acts of kindness & generosity. From here it is a long haul up into 3000m high Mexico City over 10days. It is day 218 of 572 (I feel a little like Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves writing that...) but my resolve is stronger now than when I started that the Lord's heart is for unity. True unity. It's a long road ahead though. Please pray on & feel free to send my mum a birthday message at mary.clear@onecare.org.au!
God bless, Sam.
"You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day." Psalm 91:5

(ps: "...do not throw your pearls to pigs" Matt 7:6)

Direction, Wind & Exfoliation

2007-07-15T14:41:00.000-07:00

Hello to you from somewhere in Mexico! I've spent the last few days walking along winding, forest-guarded roads that have not aided my sense of direction one little bit. I'm... somewhere in Mexico. It's very beautiful through this region (south east of Mexico City) with rolling hills, distant mountains & a fresh breeze all day long to ease the heat of the scorching sun. As it is, I'm not supposed to be in this area at all. According to my itinerary I should be about 200km south west of here but I discovered a series of roads on my map that gets me into Mexico City a day ahead of schedule so Nikki & I took the turn & to this day are enjoying the change up from arid 'leeward' countryside to the greener 'windward' side of the mountains. At the beginning of the week we walked & prayed our way through the windiest part of Mexico where the towns are aptly named 'The Wind' & 'The Windiest'. I counted over 100 wind turbines in between walking along the road & been blown off it. Nikki was very satisfied though to knock off her longest day on the road to date as we trekked 54km after not being able to secure accomodation at the 36km mark in our original destination for the day. The following day was thus rather short & to our great delight landed us very close to the Pacific Ocean. We made our way down to the deserted beach for a final look at the sea until southern Europe in 2008. The waves were pounding the beach & it didn't look particularly safe so we only ventured out to just above knee depth. I still managed to get plummeted by a huge wave, get washed up on the sand & then dragged back into the surf, on my belly, trying in vein to claw my way back onto my feet. I stood up just in time to get smashed back into the sand by a second wave. Effectively I discovered the Mexican all-in-one exfoliation for idiots. I'm still picking sand out of my shorts. Skin looks good though. The Mexican folks through this region have been lovely for the most part & we had our dinner & two rooms offered free of charge last night in a small village because the guy in charge is a Christian & in no way wanted to charge missionaries. Beautiful guy. We passed him at 7am this morning about 10km out of the town as he finished up his night shift working on the road works. Some folks work hard, very hard. A lot more prayer still to come & hopefully many more people to meet & pray with / invite to pray for unity along the way. I'll pass on the beaches though, thanks. More time to think as well as I walk. I've basically spent a lot of time this week pondering the 'actual' differences of various churches but basically it's been a 'presonal pray week' rather than a 'something I can write about in the blog' week. I liked it :-) God bless & please keep on praying. In Christ, Sam.
"Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love & peace will be with you." 2Cor 13:11

Monsters, Earthquakes & Humidity

2007-07-08T13:05:00.000-07:00

"Don't become a monster in order to destroy a monster" - Bono, U2.
It doesn't feel like it's been a week between posts, it feels like it's been a month & a very long one at that. Nikki & I have found it very difficult to deal with the harsh taunting & at times verbal abuse of the locals here in mexico. There is a lot of hurt here over the treatment of Mexicans in the USA & so (thinking that we're from the USA) the locals have at times treated us in the exact way they despise their own country men being treated in the US. It's disappointing to see so many people become what they despise. I'm also a little tired of hearing people justify the treatment by sighting that those people meant no harm but just thought we were from the USA. This to me sounds more like, "Sorry you were treated badly, but your skin is the wrong colour to be treated fairly from the start." Nikki & I certainly have a lot to offer to the Lord for unity as we walk & have to simply allow ourselves to be more & more open to being stretched in humilty. We also sat through a 6.9 earthquake in Tonalà but to be honest, that was rather exciting! I've never felt an earthquake in my life so to hear the rumble & then be thrown from side to side a good foot either way was kind of like being a kid at an adventure park. Thank the Lord there was no major damage in the area - just a beaming Aussie wondering if there was stillmore to come... The last 9days have taken us up along the last of the steaming jungle off shoot from Central America. The humidity was unbearable at times & with temperatures soaring into the low 40's I regularly finished my days walking looking like I'd been for a swim fully clothed. it was disgusting. Nikki of course finished without raising a sweat... (she wishes!) In the past 11 days we have walked a total of 357km & it has been tougher than perhaps any week before it. Both of us had some extreme blisters, heat rash, aching joints &, well, problems with the food. Add on to that the humidty & regular unwelcoming of the locals & we are thankful to have a day off now to just 'be'. For all our complaints though, everything was put in to perspective when we found ourselves sleeping under the same church awning as 15 El Salvadorian refugees on the road to the United States, hoping to cross the border illegally & find a new life & future. Bleeding toes are ok I guess. Our huge highlight (other than the ice-cream man who was riding his bicycle-trolley down the highway) was meeting a young Texan family(Jason, Amanda & their two boys) living in Arriaga. They have sold up everything to move to Mexico & serve at the orphanage in Arriaga that basically takes the children who have seen everythying in their lives apart from love. Their job is taxing but simple - love them (and they do it well). Their lives & generosity were inspiring & made me want to be a missionary... again. Please keep praying for total unity of all people of faith & again, please feel free to sign the online petition of those praying for unity simply as an encouragement to those who are aleady praying. God bless you all 6 stay out of trouble! Sam.
"If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you & take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles." Matt 5:39-41

Walk on - southern Mexico

2007-06-30T11:12:00.000-07:00

Trumpets in the street, Tequilla in the milk bar & 40 people jammed on to the back of a ute - this is southern Mexico! Nikki & I crossed the border three days ago & are heading north piece by piece, through the suprisingly green, mountainous & humid countryside. I picked Nikki up from the airport in Guatemala City (by foot) & after a final recouperating stay with the Franciscan's (and Fr Gerard) we were off towards the border. To get back to the 'walking path' we needed to take a bus for some distance & with out a doubt it was the most harrowing piece of driving I've ever seen in my life! The bus driver screamed through tight corners, over-took semi-trailers while vehicles were coming the other way, forcing them onto the gravel edging (well, apart form the one guy who had nowhere to go & simply locked up completely as we just squeezed through) & got tired of the slow moving traffic at one point & drove across the median strip onto the opposite side of the freeway & simply dodged the oncoming traffic for a kilometre! Guatemalan buses - don't do it. I am very happy to be walking again. Mexico is slightly more developed than the previous countries but there is substantial angst towards anyone from the USA. I'm not from the USA, but Nikki & I look like we could be & so our walking has been accompanied by many blairing car horns, verbal abuse & unwelcoming stares. There's still a lot of poverty here & it still eats at me as I walk that this is all optional; that the poverty (in its many guises) exists because we allow it to. I'm not preaching, just writing done my musings. I guess the big question on a day-to-day basis is how to be part of a solution & not continue to be part of the cause. It's been great having Nikki alongside for the past hundred odd kilometres as we talk, pray, sing, enjoy the views & try to figure out the road signs. I'll stop typing here & let Nikki introduce herself further!
Hello hello everyone! Just to put you all in the picture, I have been traveling & working in the UK and Europe for the past 2 years & after being back home over Christmas & finding out Sam had flown overseas on this big mission to Unify the churches, its steeples and all its peoples, I thought, well thats a hugemungus task he has taken on. So for the last 6 months I have been reading the blogs & keeping in contact with the adventures & adversities of Sam´s journey & really feeling a pull & attraction to the conscience & reasons behind the walk. So, as I was able to, booked flights to land me in the path of Sams walk & met up with him 6 days ago.
Walking with Sam has been interesting. Im sure already i'm driving him crazy with my deafness & his need to repeat himself all the time. But I cant help but laugh that on his second attempt to get his message across another whopper of a truck comes harrowing past at a million miles an hour & Sam is silently mouthing his exasperated point of conversation! A smile goes a long way! And such is what we have found with the Mexicans...they are all suspecting & stand-offish until we make the first wave or nod, smile & say ´hola!´. They become more animated when they know we aren´t on the hunt...(our walking sticks look pretty threatening!)
On the bus ride (mentioned above) that belongs in MovieWorld & rated ´XYZ´, ´only for people with low blood pressure´, Sam was so wide-eyed with amazment that I thought his eyeballs were going to pop out! It was absolutely horribly wrong though, my learned instincts telling me that accidents happen with this craze & egotistic manner of driving. But we alighted in one piece.
Walking has been challenging but amazing. Sunrises, sunsets, storms & intense, humid heat. Im stoked to be here, joining forces, praying & working for Unity, getting out of the tourist/traveller mode of making assumptions of the people we encounter & into a mission-focussed, Jesus-inspired passing on of love & unity. ´Its all the little things...´
God bless, Sam & Nikki
"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy." Matt 5:7

Hospitalised in Guatemala City

2007-06-23T14:16:00.000-07:00

Yeah, yeah, I know, about time something interesting happened. My week started poorly with an unpleasant encounter with a burley Evangelical Minister who reacted to my jounrey by getting me in a vise-like grip & forcing me onto my knees while he prayed for me. I thought he was going to crush my skull. I'm still at a loss as to what was going through his head at the time but once I was released form his powerful grip I was very quick to hit the road the again. Probably shouldn't have. Would've been wiser to find a quite spot & just sit there. Somehow a few days later, and I'm not sure how or when, I managed to pick up a strain of salmonella poisoning that, over the course of a few hours, drained ever once of energy from me until I couldn't move another inch. Unfortunately that point of 'Oh, oh, I'm in trouble here' came as I entered a public toilet. I was floored & couldn't make my way back out. The public toilets here are staffed & thankfully they came to my aid & propped me up on a chair. They called an ambulance for me & as my condition worsened (I was rugged up shivering in a tropical country) the crowd began to gather. After 2 hours I was still sitting there unable to move & in agony. Some armed soldiers checked in to make sure everything was ok but I must have past out because one moment they were there & then they'd disappeared. The ambulance arrived 5 hours after the call was placed (I hadn't been shot or stabbed so I'd been placed down the list) & they very slowly walked me down the stairs, through a crowd of about 50 people (I said hi) & into the mini-van ambulance. We raced through the then peak-hour traffic, siren wailing & horn tooting, to the St John Of God Hospital. By this stage I was no longer freezing cold but beginning to develop a fever (38.5 degrees & blood pressure of 80/50). They diagnosed the salmonella poisoning & suspected it was causing a Typhoid fever. They hooked me up to a drip & began to pump a couple of litres of anti-biotics & fluids into me. I felt like death on a stick. They held me overnight & continued to administer 'stuff' through the drip. The emergency ward was full of student doctors who I'm adimant had just stepped off the set of some medical comedy. They enjoyed their work more than most of us enjoy a footy match. I saw two interns arm wrestling next to the patient they were preparing for emergency surgery, one had just received a funny sms & was doing the rounds showing all the doctors (much to their amusement), one of the male inturns was trying to find a date for a female inturn by asking all the patients if they liked her & then they started passing my size 16 boots around for a laugh. I was at least laughing on the inside. By 8am the following day they discharged me & so very gingerly I walked down the street & checked into a hotel where I've been recouperating since. I'm no longer 'death on a stick', just a stick, so I'm eating plenty! The challenge to be united in love (please see last blog entry) is still eating at me massively. In an attmept to put it into action I bought some food for two homeless guys sitting not too far from where I was staying. It was getting late & the temperature had dropped singnificantly to the point where the two guys were 'cuddling' each other for warmth. I sat down next to them & handed over the food. They got stuck into it & one of them introduced himself & we started to chat. I asked him if he had anywhere to stay & said he had no home but there was a shelter down the road where he could stay for (the equivalent of) $5. It didn't come easily but I handed over the money for them to stay the night in the hostel. Then the most incredible thing happened. The guy I'd given the money to wouldn't give the other bloke his share & they began to fight right there in front of me. I watched, wide-eyed, for a few seconds & then snapped back into reality & gave them a thunderous, "Hey!" they both snapped to attention & he reluctantly handed over part of the money. I couldn't beleive it, one moment they were cuddling each other for warmth & then they're fighting like dogs. Mother Teresa pointed out years ago while visiting New York that the greatest poverty isn't a lack of money, clothes or shelter, but love. It was hard enough for me to prize the money from my wallet for them, but the challenge of making a deposit, not into their bank accounts, but into their hearts is somewhat more of a challenge. More prayer.
In very exciting news, on Monday morning after 6months of trekking it alone, I will be joined on this journey by another Australian who has sold up to walk the world & pray for unity. I'm tired of carrying my back-pack anyway :-) Please log in next week to meet... Niki Harris.
God bless you and please pray on!
Samuel.
ps: The tap outside my hotel room was dripping the other night & keeping me awake so I tip-toed outside in the dark & gave it a twist to tighten it up. The whole thing came off & there was water flying everywhere with incredible force. I fumbled in the dark & with the water pressure to get the stupid thing back on but eventually did, minus a small drip. Idiot.

Dominicans, Mother Teresa & Michael More...

2007-06-17T10:52:00.000-07:00

G'day from northern El Salvador! I walked for the first couple of days in El Salvador but my leg became worse over time until I was almost hopping down the highway. It was too painful to even move so I've rested it for the remainder of this week & made my way between towns by any means possible. This week I've had a shake up of why I'm walking & what unity really is thanks to a Dominican priest in San Salvador. The night before arriving in San Salvador I saw an interview with film-maker Michael More who commented on his latest film exposing the disgrace of the USA's Health Care system. He noted that when he arrives at the 'Pearly Gates' he expects to be asked by Jesus if he feed him when he was hungry, clothed him when he was naked & nursed him when he was sick; That as a Christian it is his responsibility to stand up for those who cannot stand for themselves. It struck me on two counts, firstly because I didn't realise this side of Michael More existed & secondly because it struck me that there was a connection of sorts between Unity & loving your neighbour, but I didn't at that point realise how strong that connection was! I have held from the very beginning of this walk that Unity is important but not the most important aspect of our faith but that, as Michael Moore observed, loving our brothers & sisters is. When I arrived in San Salvador I vistited a few churches but ended my day with an offer of hospitality at a Dominican Parish in the CBD. I initially spoke with a German missionary priest who was straight down the line in saying that he didn't care too much for inter-denominational unity when there was such disunity within the christian world socially. The rich & the poor are not united. All around me in San Salvador I could see evidence of division, from the bullet holes in the church doors where 21 people were masacred, to the hundreds of homeless men, women & children outside the church, to the reports of the on average 12 murders per day in this small country. The priests words ate at me for the next 24 hours & I then happened to read a series of quotes from Mother Teresa who expressed a similar line of thought to that of Michael More. Incredibly, Mother Teresa also had her own little play on what would be asked at the 'Pearly Gates' quoting, "Jesus will not ask you how much you have done, but rather how much love have you put into what you have done." It was as if my eyes were being opened to the grand picture of unity & I've since begun to see unity in a very different light. Unity is theologically, philosophically and socially - completely. Unity is Love. And love is not just a feeling but rather an action. Perhaps those of you reading this have already been praying for unity on a social level as well, but if not, please consider this element of unity as you do pray. I'm personally beginning to wonder if I'll ever make it back home now - there's too much work to do :-) Who's in?
Before I log off, a very big thank you to all those who have helped me out financially after the various set backs - The path is open now to simply focus back on prayer so thank you very much!

NEXT WEEK: I know there are many people reading these blogs who I've never met and I often get questions about the walk passed on to me via email so next week I thought I'd do a Q&A. So, whether I know you or not, it you'd like to leave a question in the comments section or drop an email to samuel.clear@ymt.com.au I'll try to answer as many as I can next week!

Until then though, please keep praying & inviting others to pray as well.
God bless, Sam.
"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Matt 25: 34-36

Swindlers, Stalkers, Sickness & Strees Fractures

2007-06-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

As the heading suggests, it's been a big week. Thank the Lord it's Sunday. This week I crossed from Nicaragua into Honduras & just 3hrs ago crossed into El Salvador! I have a stress fracture in my left leg sustained during a 40km walk in Nicaragua with two massive blisters causing me to limp & hence add undue stress to my leg. I've had something in each country that has stopped me in some way from completing the crossing on foot in its entirity so this time I was determinded to just offer the pain up for unity & complete the remaining 150km - very slowly. By the time I made it to the border (5 days later) my leg was badly swollen so I rested through the whole of Honduras where the mission took on a new look of 'RideTheBus4one'. I still stopped in each town along the way & was afforded more time to spend travelling from church to church inviting people to pray for unity. I met some great people & enjoyed the rest. In the end I had no choice but to take the bus because at the border I also got food poisoning & spent the night sitting on the floor embracing the toilet. That was a few days ago & I still have a headache from it. So, lots of painful walking followed by lots of painful bus travel while drinking litres of fluid trying to re-hydrate! I was also swindled twice in two days. Firstly, after an evening meeting with a Padre my leg was seizing up so I took a tricyle taxi back to my hotel. The taxi-rider overcharged me 5 times the going rate ($30 instead of $6) but I didn't realise this until inside the hotel. I quickly hobbled back outside to find a heap of other tricyle taxi riders laughing at me. One called out, "Hey my friend, where do you want to go? For $30 I'll take you anywhere!" They all roared with laughter. All of a sudden I forgot about my leg & marched my way back through the town until 'my man' happened to ride up alongside me on a push-bike this time. I didn't recognise him at first but then he made the mistake of commenting about our trip to the hotel. I stopped and smiled at him, "Hello. Did you steal from me?" I placed my hand firmly on his shoulder and he very promptly reefed the $30 out of his pocket & gave it back to me. I took back $20, gave him $10 & said goodnight. He rode off very quickly. The other time was with the money exchangers at the border. The Money Exchanger under exchanged by a hefty 30%, which I discovered over lunch while talking to a local about the value of the currency. This time I grabbed a police officer & we both went back to the money exchangers & though we couldn't find him, an honest man stepped forward & said that it was his friend & that he'd give me the money owed & seek out his friend for the difference later. So, on I walked. In Honduras I was woken in the middle of the night with a dark shadowy figure standing over me running his hand up and down my body! That is a scarey thing to wake up to. I flinched as I woke & the figure retracted from my bed & stood a few metres away from me. I had no idea what to do so I just pretended to still be asleep. After a few minutes he finally left the room. Feeling more than just a little uneasy I got out of bed & wondered what on earth I could do. I prayed & asked for some help & as I stood near my door I heard him come out of his room again & come up to my door once more. I stood there looking at my door as he slowly opened it up. It was like something from a horror movie. As the door opened up I flicked the light on & vigorously 'scruffed' him by the shirt & pushed him back out away from my room. I was staying in a missionary hostel & across the way was a chapel so as he tried to run I fastened my grip on him, opened up the chapel door & flung him inside. I dragged him right up the front & threw him onto his knees. He pleaded, "No, no, Jesus is here!" I agreed & replied, "Correct & he's the only one who has permission to be in my room at any time. Goodnight." As I left the chapel (picking up the chairs I'd knocked down in dragging him in) I heard him begin to start praying. I hope he spent a while there. I found a way to secure my door shut & back to bed I went. As I wrote at the start, Thank the Lord it's Sunday. This has been a long entry but I can't go without sharing a very embarrassing moment in a rural town in northern Nicaragua. Residing at the country store I finished off my tub of yoghurt & tossed, basketball style, the tub into the bin nearby. My perfect shot was meet with looks of shock & dismay from the locals there that confused to me to say the least. I couldn't work out why they reacted as they did so I inspected the rubbish bin to discover I had unwittingly 'three-pointed' my yoghurt tub into the towns supply of dried corn kernels. I quickly apologised & retrieved the tub but as I stood up the cross around my neck hooked on the side of the bin and literally 'popped' the figure of Jesus off the cross! This was met with even more looks of shock & dismay form the locals. I retrived the figure of Jesus from the corn & discovered it actually had little nails in the back of it so I had the embarrassing task of then nailing the figure of Jesus back onto the cross... I then found the real rubbish bin for the yoghurt tub a bid a quick farewell. Always place your rubbsih in the bin. There were in fact other incredible moments over the past week but I don't have enough space to write about all of them. Basically though, God is taking care of me & though my path is riddled with opposition I'm still enjoying the journey. Please pray on & if you haven't already, please feel welcome to sign the online prayer list simply as a way of encouraging everyone else to pray. God bless, Sam.
"I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church." Col 1:24

From northern Nicaragua with a smile

2007-06-02T11:22:00.000-07:00

I have boots. I first began making inquiries about a replacement pair of boots while crossing Venezuela & that was nearly 3months ago! Of course, I had to fight until the end to actually get them on my feet. They were late arriving in Managua after the plane they were on was grounded in San Jose & then upon arrival Customs siezed them (??). It took another 2days but I now have them & very thankful for that! I like northern Nicaruagua. I've met many people who greet me with a smile & I've been kindly treated by the many churches here, as well as the everyday folk I meet on the side of the road. Slowly but surely more & more people are praying for unity. Managua city was a scarey place where at one point I thought I was about to get 'done over' again but I was very thankful to be able to continue on the journey (and get out of there). But enough of the chit chat, I finally have my boots so in celebration I'd like to be a little less serious & post my top ten ways to be united...
SAM'S TOP 10 - Ways to be United
1. Don't be disunified
2. Superglue yourself to another person of faith & ask them to continue the chain
3. Spread a rumour that the 1st 1000 people to be united will receive $500 from Microsoft who are tracking your conversations & thoughts from Bill Gates' very own personal computer
4. Say, "There's no place like Unity" & tap your heals together 3 times
5. Ask Bush, Blair & Howard to unite us under 'Operation Unity Now'
6. Insist on having a McUnity day at your local McDonalds to raise awareness
7. Wait for Shrek IV, it's on his 'to do' list
8. Write to Oprah & insist that this blog be her 'Book of the Week'
9. Nominate representatives from each church on to the next series of 'Survivor' to be held in Tasmania - They'll all fall in love & won't want to leave each other... awww (www.wydtas.org.au)
10. Set your alarm for 4:01 as a reminder to pray for Unity & pray away!!!

Next week, my top ten way's to write a blog entry without writing much sepcifically at all... I'm well & still rolling on! Please keep me in your prayers & particularly unity. God bless, Samo.
"If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness & compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit & purpose." Philippians 2:1-2