7/5/2015
After four and a half years, not much had changed around East Liverpool OH. I ran through there on my first cross country adventure. The people were so good to me, I had to return. My friends Cheryl and Don hosted us for a couple of evenings. They arranged for the paper to do a story and they even put me in front of an audience. One thing I remembered about staying with Cheryl was that I received all the calories necessary to run strong. That was one thing that had not changed. Lightly seasoned frittatas and thick blueberry French toast brought back memories of the journey that started everything.
We spent the third of July seeing the nature around town. As I was taken by the local creek, my legs dangled and relaxed. I did take a few moments out of my day to go speak with some senior citizens at the Crossroads assisted living facility. When I entered the building, I noticed it smelled like a brand new apartment. It even looked like a model home display on the inside. The speaking engagement was an even that completed the spectrum of ages of my audience. Unlike kids, I didn’t worry about their attention span. I did however have a tough time with my volume. After every few minutes of speaking, I was asked to speak louder. At one point my voice grew hoarse from speaking so loudly. A microphone was placed in my hand and I pushed forward. When I finished my story the second time, I asked if anyone had any questions. It was the first time I had ever encountered silence after speaking. When I made my way out the door, something clicked. Suddenly I found myself surrounded by inquisitive senior citizens.
The rest of the day was spent relaxing. That evening we were content to watch the fireflies dance in the yard.
The Fourth of July appeared right after we closed our eyes. Don came over bright and early to shuttle us back to their house for breakfast. Guest trickled in and before we knew it the house was packed. The scent of barbeque and side dishes filled the air. I ate food throughout the day and felt too heavy to continue into the evening. It was an achievement for me to feel that full when I took into consideration my daily calorie intake. The nonstop activity left me more wiped out than my days on the road. Crystal and I needed to turn in early to recover from our little break. We looked forward to the king size bed back at Cheryl’s mother’s house. I would initiate a deep sleep for many hours.
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