So after maybe 30 minutes I wanted to get on the road. I said goodbye to them and packed my things up to go. I headed out, stretched for a few minutes, and then started to walk. I took off down the frontage road along the 60. It was a really nice morning and I was feeling pretty good mentally. I was hoping to make it to Beaumont by the end of the day which was roughly 14 miles away. My right knee was feeling I little unstable and I was slightly limping, but I had much better thoughts that overrode the pain. My thoughts were focused on the big blue ocean that was ahead of me and less than a week away.
I walked toward the edge of the small town of Cabazon where I took a short break near a strip mall under a small tree on some grass. I sat there for about 20 minutes drinking water and it was starting to warm up now. I was ready to get a few miles in now and to leave Cabazon. I walked under the 60 south where my GPS took me to head toward Banning CA. As I crossed under the bridge I came across a homeless man sitting under there. He had a prosthetic leg and looked like he could use some help. I gave him a few dollars and a McDonald's gift card and he absolutely light up. It lifted my spirit to see how much he was lifted and smiling. I shook his hand and walked down to the next corner where I came to a homeless vet. I handed him a gift card and he looked at me with a pretty confused face. He looked almost shocked and confused. I always smile when that happens because I think its pretty hilarious. Im guessing its because I probably look like the last person who would be giving away stuff. I feel really blessed to be able to share what I have. Its also such a rewarding feeling to trust that I will be ok no matter how much of my stuff I give away. I am so inspired by being put in this position by others. It really males me think of what possibility's are out there with the simple act of giving. I've never been stimulated by this thought before I had nothing and was in a position where someone's act of giving was literally feeding my starving body, or hydrating my body that was deprived of fluids.
I left the town of Cabazon now and was walking parallel to the 60 heading west. The road I was on was a single lane road that was really rough concrete and seemed to be an unmaintained road for some time now. I was getting pretty hot by now and had gone a couple miles. I figured another mile or so and I would be ready for a little break. Then just ahead the pavement ended and I was now on a dirt road again. I was pretty confident it would go through as it ran right next to the railroad and I could see the town of Banning not too far ahead.
Just as I was looking around for a shade spot, I came to a small bridge where the railroad had a dried creek running under it. I pulled off the dirt path and went down a little hill to get under the bridge and take a break. Just as I came into the shade of the bridge I saw something written on the wall that blew me away. There it was written in a bold formation, words that spoke directly to the spirit of my travels, almost like it was fate. It read "I left the world an empty slate to paint a portrait free from hate". As I read it I felt the Goosebumps grow tall from the surface of my skin and the chills shot up my spine and to my neck. I just stood there and smiled. This was amazing. It put my mind in a perfect moment. Everything was perfect as I stood there staring at fate. I knew this was meant to be. It was a moment of clarity and absolute ecstasy. Nothing else in the world mattered in this moment except that I have trust that there is a plan for me. The things that have come together on this journey have been so amazing and I truly believe I have an amazing life worth living ahead of me. Whether its long or whether it ends soon, I need to live it. Live it with trust and faith. Enjoy it while its here. Share my love and dispose of my fears. Im so thankful for these majestic moments that cannot be planned. That alone is worth fighting to find what is around the next blind corner.
So I sat there in front of the writing and took a break sitting on my sleeping bag and drinking some water. I really wished I could get a picture of me with that writing on the wall. I had an idea. I thought maybe there was an app that I could get with a timer. So I searched and I found one! I downloaded it and then set up my ipod on the ground and set the timer for 10 seconds. I got a perfect picture (above) and was really happy I thought of that. It was perfect!
I took off from there taking a few last gazes at the writing and smiling. As I walked away I was very pleased with such an awesome day. I had to take a moment and just give thanks. I don't have enough thanks to give and still feel like I don't deserve the blessed events happening in my life. But I thanked god for what I could. I walked west towards Banning along the dirt road. I was feeling dam good!
I finally made it about 3 more miles and to Banning. I came to a paved road finally and went back under the 60 north, then made a left turn to head west for downtown Banning. It was a little bit of a rough area, not bad but just rougher than the last few towns I guess. As I walked west through the town I came across a little old Mexican lady who passed me carrying a bag. When she passed me I then heard her call out something. I turned around and she said something in Spanish and held the bag up towards me. She had a slight hesitation when making the gesture that made me think it may have just been a guilty conscience making her feel the need to help me. Since I had that instinct I thought maybe she actually may need that food more than I need it. I have trust that withougt taking it I will be fine. So I smiled and told her no thanks and thanked her very much. She was so cute and smiled.
I walked another couple miles where I decided to take my long break at a mcdonalds. Right outside in the mcdonalds parking lot there was a man picking through the trash. As I walked by him I gave him one of the Del Taco giftcards that I was given the day before. He mumbled under his breath and said thank you. He was an old man with no teeth. I felt sad for him but knew I had no idea of his life. Im sure people feel sad for me from time to time, but im truly happy and hope nobody feels sad for me. I have hope that there are other homeless that have that content feeling and are pleased with life. I went inside mcdonalds and ordered a drink and a double cheeseburger. I sat near an outlet and charged my things while using the internet. There were a group of kids outside that looked like they were up to no good. They kept looking inside like they were going to do something sneaky soon. Sure enough two of them came in and filled up their cups with soda. the cups they had were from ampm. they went back outside and then a few minutes later were yelling at another young kid walking by on the sidewalk. Its so weird to me to see people doing little things that make no sense in my mind. After being out in the desert and honestly feeling hopeless and like I was pushing my personal limits of solitude and supplies, I see so many things in populated areas that don't make sense. Like small arguments or complaints. We are all alive with food and water, what is there to bicker about? Those aren't real problems.
I stayed there for about an hour and a half and then packed my things up again to head out of there. I headed down the road and towards Beaumont. After about a mile of walking a guy and girl walking approached me holding drinks and snacks. They stopped in front of me and said "Nick?". It was a guy who had followed me for a while on the internet and his girlfriend. He had mentioned on twitter at some point that he wanted to join me for a walk one day, and now here he was. So I shook him and his girlfriends hand and we started walking. He told me he had recently been going through struggles in life and was living in his truck for a long period of time. He was actually homeless while I was in about Texas, and since then he got a job and was now living with a friend. That was pretty cool to hear. Its crazy that ive been walking long enough for peoples lives to change like that. Sometimes I forget how long its been out here on the road. They walked with me for a few miles and we really connected while talking about how we perceive life in different pathways. Or how life can be hard when your mind is your biggest enemy. He was a really cool guy who had definitely been through some rough times but was keeping his head up and fighting through. It meant a lot to me to have him say I had really inspired him in many ways. That is so cool. But the truth is that I have found the most inspiration from this and it has been the amazing people along the way who have inspired me. I like to see them all as Angels who are delivering hope to me.
We said goodbye just about a mile from Beaumont as they still needed to walk back and the sun was setting. I left and continued into Beaumont. I was north of town entering the city limits in what looked to be a newer residential area. It was really nice and I was walking past a big empty field with a mountain behind it. It was a very peaceful setting for sure. The sun was setting and I was starting to search for a hideout to catch some sleep that night. A few miles up I came to a park that had its gates closed. I rolled my cart around the gate and walked back to a patch of trees with flat dry grass around it. It was hidden from the road and there wasn't much else around there. It was a good area to sleep for the night and I felt pretty safe. I rolled out my tarp and sleeping bag and plopped down to relax. It was a good day and I had made it the 14 miles or so that I set out to. I was very content as I closed my eyes for the night. A day to be very thankful for. I slept good that night with the exception of a few spiders crawling on me and waking me up. Not a big deal when you have slept outside in the south.
Sent from my iPod
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