Day 485

Today began with a conversation with my new friend Peggy (as you look at the picture, she’s bent-kneed to the right of the buggy). Peggy was fixing fried rice over a camp stove, and asked if I had had breakfast. I said I had and thanked her for asking. As I began the process off striking camp, Peggy asked about Chandler, and where my car was. I explained that I am Walking for Peace, and that the buggy has everything Chandler and I need. She was quite surprised, and offered her blessings for us on the Walk. I asked how long they are going to be in the States and Peggy said for another 23 days. It turns out that she and her husband own a camping property in Taiwan. I asked what the biggest difference between campgrounds in America and Taiwan is, and she said that in Taiwan, the individual sites are significantly farther apart.

As it turns out, Peggy, her husband and their kids are traveling with three other families from Taiwan, and they had the campsites just on the other side of mine.

During the next half hour or so, the children from these four families came and played with Chandler, while some of the adults cautiously made their way into my campsite. They began asking questions (with occasional translation through the kids) about the Walk, the buggy and Chandler. One of the gentlemen asked if the buggy was sturdy. I invited him to give it a push, which seemed to make him feel confident about the buggy’s integrity.

Just as everyone was getting ready to go, Peggy came over and handed me a plastic bag full of fresh fried rice for my lunch. As I thanked her, I explained that I would be happy to have it later, which I truly was. It was delicious!

Finally, as they prepared to go to the Boeing museum and I prepared to Walk, one of the men asked if we could all take a picture together. I said yes, and we got someone from the camp across the path take the photo. As we set up for it, everyone was laughing and smiling and really enjoying the moment.

As I Walked from the campground toward Seattle, I was aware how at ease I felt, and was grateful for it. Most of the day was spent on the Green River Trail, which was fun for Chandler because she had the opportunity to interact with lots of dogs. And of course, I got a chance to interact with the folks Walking them.

By late in the day, I had not yet found a place to stay (I was in communication with a couple of Couchsurfing folks), and I was too tired to Walk any more, so I stopped in at a coffee shop. As I parked the buggy, one of the gentlemen at the table beside me asked how long I was going to be there, because he was going to smoke. I mentioned I’d be there for a few minutes, and that he should go ahead. About 45 minutes later, the gentleman smiled and mentioned that I’d been there for “a lot longer than a few minutes”. I laughed and said, “Yes, 4 cigarettes worth (he had flicked the butts on the ground), and I pointed to the butts. He immediately said that when he asked if there was an ashcan nearby, the server suggested using the street “since the parking lot is cleaned by a street sweeper every night”. After further discussion with the gentleman, we found ourselves laughing out loud at the subtle humor we both possess, and truly enjoying each other. As I Walked away, he offered me hope for an enjoyable Walk, and when I turned to thank him, he was picking up the cigarette butts. I smiled, turned to the road and headed out.

By this time, it was about 8:15 pm, and I had gotten a “yes” from a Couchsurfing host… 2.2 miles back in the direction I’d come from. Over the next two hours, I worked at making my way to the address I’d been given (only to be taken in the wrong direction by google maps), and finally arrived at 10:15 pm. As is sometimes the case, my host was ready for bed, so we exchanged pleasantries and we went our separate ways.

The day was actually full of relaxed, peaceful Walking, conversations and scenery. I was moved by the enthusiasm of my friends at the campground, and the kindness of providing me with a meal for my day. I enjoyed snippets of conversations, and watching Chandler enjoy herself along the river trail. I have hope that conversation my new friend and I had at the coffee shop was enough to shift how he disposes of his cigarette butts going forward. And, I’m grateful for a flexible, gracious host.