Be thankful for very uplifting and soul-expanding experience of 2011. Keep in mind what leads to precious moments of Light, Peace, Strength, Love, “Bliss…”
Leave the darkness behind, in 2011. Whenever it tries knocking on your door in the future, no response is the best response. This takes practice, dedication, devotion, commitment. Despite how long it takes, however, I’m working to prove to you that when you take determined steps in a given direction, as many as need be, you WILL ultimately achieve great goals!!!
Carry forward, nurture, and multiply the seeds of enlightenment within you.
BRIGHTEN your life story in 2012!!!

Never having visited before, on the map Houston looked like nothing more to me than just some big, oversized, oily metropolis. I had no interest in coming here, and my intention was to walk days to the north of H-town. But the Angels of Light & Love have guided me here to Houston. I’ve stayed for two weeks, and I’ve had the greatest time getting to know the wonderful locals. I’ll be heading out this coming week, yet holding on to the merry memories for all my years…

Jeffrey & Errah Lannah gave me a sunset tour of Hibiscus Hill Plantation, in Waller, TX, an organic (WWOOF) farm which supplies local businesses and sustainability-minded grocery stores with a variety of locally-grown organic products. I’ll be spending the night here, and receiving a fuller tour in the morning. Waller was not on my route, and so Jeffrey is shuttling me back & forth for this off-the-route excursion. (My walking cart is still at I-45 & I-610, in N Houston.)
I’m quite a fan of the general concept of World Wide Organization of Organic Farms (WWOOF), whose farms truly are spread throughout the world and offer countless work-trade-learn opportunities, a concept from which many youths have tremendously benefited.
HHP is owned and operated by Rick & Georgia, owners of Houston’s Georgia’s Farm-to-Market Grocery Store.

More information on who they are and what they do is found here: http://www.txgrassfedbeef.com/store/pg/15-.aspx

Host Rashida Alisha + her many friends come together for an "Adult Orphan Christmas" in Houston. I call it the "Adult Orphan Christmas," because I believe everyone (or almost everyone) who attended was not originally from Houston, and for a variety of reasons, was unable to spend Christmas with family members out of town. So, I absolutely LOVED Rashida Alisha's use of the occasion to invite so many splendid souls together to enjoy a very loving Christmas with one another!

Many Thanks to Rashida Alisha, pictured in bright green…

I didn’t leave the Parker household, in Katy, till about noonish. Theresa’s daughter, son-in-law, and grandson had arrived from San Antonio during the morning, and it was thoroughly enjoyable to be able to spend some time getting to know them before hitting the road. Having moved here decades ago from Gary, Indiana, Theresa gave me some tremendously helpful advice regarding how I would be able to best arrive to today’s destination, Houston’s Woodway & Voss, home of hosts JB & Glauce, with whom I’d be spending the next three nights. (Link: Today’s Route.) I left Katy, and entered Houston via the nation’s sixth largest city park, George Bush Park, which, covering nearly 8,000 acres, is nearly ten times the size of New York’s Central Park. I walked a handful of miles atop a 20-foot-tall dike on the northern and eastern perimeter of George Bush Park until reaching Briar Forest Drive, an arterial that added a mile or two to my day’s travels, but featured a sidewalk for the vast majority of its span. According to the Houston Chronicle, Houston ranks 8th nationally in most dangerous cities for pedestrians, one of the main reasons being a paucity of sidewalks, and especially given that I’m pushing a hundred pounds of possessions across the country with me, it’s definitely worth it to go a bit out of my way to find that friendly sidewalk.
Despite maintaining a smile as I was completing a 17-mile day into Houston, a noticeable cramp-like pain began developing just below the ankle of my right foot as I was stepping into this massive city. It’s not uncommon for innocuous little cramps or pains to appear here or there, and for the most part, I simply push right through them– they’re usually gone within a few minutes. That said, some pains will sometimes also choose to last a little while longer. Today’s foot pain definitely fits into that latter bracket; the pain grew steadily over the last half of the day’s miles.
Jeremie, a polite 23-year-old French man whom I’d met over a week ago on Hwy 71, near Fayetteville, lived in Houston, and suddenly decided to come and join me for the day. Jeremie was coming from the opposite end of the Houston metro area, and didn’t have his own transportation, so we had to rely on our phones over the course of the day to find and meet each other. Instead of taking public transportation, Jeremie hitch-hiked his way to me, and walked the last 4-5 miles till our paths converged. By the time we met, we both were within five miles of the Woodway & Voss intersection where we’d be meeting JB & Glauce. Jeremie is a sharp guy, and I really enjoy his insights and companionship. That said, he also didn’t have a way home for the night, nor any specific plan on where he’d be sleeping. Having recently come off a three-month road trip across America with a friend, Jeremie was broke. As Jeremie’s fun appearance arrived all of the sudden during the day, I hadn’t told my hosts I would be arriving with a friend. I informed Jeremie that even though I’d been on the phone with Couchsurfing hosts JB and Glauce for well over a week, we had yet to meet in person. We were all soon to meet at the Pei Wei Asian restaurant, close to their home. Knowing Jeremie had no solid plan for how to end his day, I informed him that I’d not feel comfortable suddenly adding someone new to the hosting request I’d made weeks ago, and I asked him to not ask JB & Glauce to be hosted. He nodded in agreement. Though it’s true that the experienced road traveler Jeremie is, and he’d probably host anyone in a heartbeat, he also understood that not everyone is a seasoned road traveler– nor are they comfortable inviting just anyone in off the road on the fly.
We met JB & Glauce at PeiWei late– at about 9pm. We all immediately hit it off really well. JB & Jeremie enjoyed chatting in their native Française. Glauce and I talked a bit in português as well. We stayed nearly an hour, till they closed. As we were headed out, I asked Jeremie if he had any plan.
“Maybe a nearby church?” he asked me.
I pointed to JB & Glauce, who’d best be able to point out to him which churches were in the area. Jeremie then uttered something to JB in French, JB nodded in approval, and we all just proceeded to their classy apartment for the evening. Jeremie had obviously asked JB if he could stay with him. The vibe was good, so I didn’t meddle.
I was hobbling upon arriving to Pei Wei, and the kind friend Jeremie had stepped in to push my cart for the last couple of miles, which really helped me a lot. An hour or so later, when we were all to walk the last mile together, my foot wasn’t feeling any better, and as I limped alongside in pain, the guys not only pushed it all the way for me– they carried it upstairs to the second floor apartment. Wow! What a tremendous help!
JB & Glauce set up two sleeping spots in their guest room, and though we’d be up a while longer, we ultimately settled in to a very rejuvenating night’s rest…

JB & Glauce, Houston, Texas

14 miles into the marathon, I checked my phone and e-mail for any possible late messages that may’ve come in from Sealy. I’d written to the Chamber of Commerce, the only two local motel contacts I could find on line, and a handful of churches (with on-line e-mail addresses). No response. It was time to make some phone calls.
I did a search for “churches” on Google Maps, and over a half dozen dots appeared on the map. I started calling from west to east, just as I’d be arriving. First up: the Lutheran church. I got a machine and left a message. Next: The Shepherd’s Way Church. TSW answered live and in person. I explained my project and request (for a safe place to camp or floor space in the church in which to sleep) to the nice lady who answered, and she asked me to hold for the pastor. After three minutes, I hear a charismatic southern voice in my ear: “Hello, this is Pastor Lucas.”
“Hello Pastor Lucas, my name is George Throop. I’m currently on a Walk of Inspiration Across America, from my home state of Washington to Washington, D.C. The Walk is designed to inspire to live healthier lifestyles, and thereby reduce the risk of developing cancer and other chronic diseases. I’m nearly 3,000 miles into the Walk, and the reason I call you today is because I’m currently walking the marathon distance between Columbus and Sealy. I’ll be arriving to Sealy this evening, and I’m simply searching for a safe spot to place my tent or possibly floor space within the church to sleep overnight before continuing east tomorrow…”
“Well I’ll tell you what, how about we get you a motel room here in town– that way you can shower and sleep well overnight!”
“Wow– I really don’t need that much. Floor space somewhere would work great.”
“We got a ministerial alliance here in town, and we’d love to do this for you.”
We continued in conversation for a few minutes, and he told me that I simply needed to arrive at the church before 8 PM to receive the voucher from him (he lives 17 miles away).
“I’m a mile away from exit 709– putting me at 12 miles away from you. It’s 3:30 now, and I’ll definitely make it there before 8 PM.”
Well, though a nice, hour long break would have been nice after 14 miles, I had to return the road immediately so that I could make it to The Shepherd’s Way Church in time.
I showed up at 7:30 PM to a very warm welcome from Pastor Frank Lucas. We sat chatted for over an hour, about life, about spirituality and Scripture, and about listening to the “God Compass” within us.
Pastor Lucas gave me a voucher for a room at the Super 8 motel, and a meal voucher at Tony’s, the local truck stop restaurant– where I stopped short of finishing the greasy football’s worth of grateful food they piled onto my plate.
Though I was very ready to spend my one night in Sealy without any mattress, I’m now nestled in a warm motel room as the chilly, glove-wearing day dips into a 27-degree night.
Thank You God