6/20/2011
I got out of bed at five a.m. because I knew Trace and Rich would be arriving at seven to start our running day. I took advantage of the hot tub one last time. I treat every opportunity as if it is my last. The water massaged away every ache from my body. In fact, it left me so relaxed I had to lay down and close my eyes for a minute. I dozed off but it felt like instantly someone was knocking at the door. I knew it meant that it was time to head out. It’s a good thing I prepacked everything the previous evening. Without a doubt, I will miss Serenity Springs.
As we left I stared at the bird houses peppered around the grounds. They are home to the Purple Martin this time of the year. These birds make the journey from Brazil to Indiana. They spend three months migrating, and three months nesting. What an unbelievable journey these birds make. What’s even more remarkable is the fact that the same birds return to their exact homes to they lay their eggs year after year. And, they do it all without GPS. They also eat up to two thousand mosquitoes a day. Yes, I hope more of them come around.
Upon arrival of our point of departure, droplets of rain began to fall. It didn’t seem too bad so we took off. Rich meanwhile decided he would support our running efforts and make sure we stayed safe. It was a good thing too. There were several moments where some pretty scary big rigs approached us from behind.
The rain grew stronger and so did our running. The soaked shirts and shoes added several pounds of weight but, it didn’t stop us from collecting our mileage. I was surprised to see Trace run so well considering he had just gotten off a long plane ride from Beijing, China.
We fueled up after about seventeen miles. Somewhere over the course of running through Indiana, I crossed into my final time zone. So I guess I’m on eastern time now. The final leg. Wow. I seem to be passing milestones every other day now.
We reached the destination point a little after three. From there we were driven to Culver Academy, the place where Trace attended high school. The school grounds were magnificent. The structures had the look of European castles. The grandeur of the place overshadows many college campuses I seen. Education is obviously priority number one at this institution. Trace and Rich were determined to help me find lodging for the evening. But first, I received a tour of the school, did an interview with the local paper, followed by dinner. I continued to slosh around in my soggy 890 new balance shoes.
Several of the local hotels seemed to have nobody working. It dawned on Trace that his Chinese teacher Huang Ning Schultz and her husband Rich might be willing to put me up for the evening. Again I was a baton being passed to the next stage. The heartland of America has no shortage of kindness and generosity. This evening I would get to know about Huang and Rich. I would discover their talents in the arts and in writing. We would talk well past midnight. Yes, I feel the support growing one person at a time. The question now is, “How will I get up in the morning?”
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