Wednesday,
July 6th, 2016
Fairport,
Iowa
Cool
Mississippi Folk
“There
aren’t too many monks around here,” remarked the officer. I was really enjoying the route along the east/west
flow of the Mississippi, on Concord St., and then on Hwy 22, headed for the
town of Muscatine, where I met the police officer. To my left, the muddy waters would carry
massive barges of cargo. It is a river
that has perhaps as much folklore and social value in America as the Ganges has
been to India. The only feature about
the Ganges that distinguishes it from other rivers, is the spiritual power
attached to its name.
In
any event, people along the Mississippi have been real “cool,” including the
police. There have been so many ride
offers. I have to decline, of
course. People give me water. This compensates for the loss of it, by way
of my sweat.
It’s
humid, but over-cast.
Young
fellows ask about life as a monk. A
woman asks for a picture of me, which she wants to send on the internet. There are also questions, “Where did you
start? Why the walking?” No challenges! Just interested people asking questions. Perhaps the most intriguing interaction was
with someone named Johnny.
I
met Johnny at the side of the river. He
had parked there overnight, tucked amidst the trees and onto the sand. He has his life’s belongings in his car. It was a rough night with strong wind gusts,
thunder, lightning, and heavy rain; enough to make a sheep rather restless.
I
take it that he’s about 40. He’s from
one of the Carolinas and is trying to get to Colorado to start up an existence
again. He’s super friendly, but kind of
lost. I shared with him the maha (great) mantra. It was his first
time meeting a monk.
May
the Source be with you!
16
miles
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