Detroit,
Michigan to Chicago, Illinois
156
Days on the Road!
Journal
Entry for:
Sunday, July 23 –
Sunday, July 30, 2000
Week
22
Total
Miles Cycled to Date: 8018 miles (12,989 km)
Community
to Community: Detroit,
Michigan to Chicago, Illinois
Weather
for the Week: Sunshine
and Rain = Joy and Pain (for Pain details, see Brock’s journal entry
below)
Media
Successes:
Wilma’s
Reflections From the Road
“We
have heard from all the different members of the tour now, except for one
wonderful spirit, Winnie. I asked if I could tell her story and she just
meowed, which I took as a “yes”.
Ten
years ago on our second trip through the U.S. in our camper, we stopped at
the Helen Woodward Animal Center in California where we literally adopted
Winnie and Pooh. After the initial troubles of adjusting to living in the
camper together, Brock and I were seriously contemplating returning them
as we hadn’t slept in a week, but we all made a commitment to stick it
out together. It took a while to get used to each other, but everyday more
and more signs of trust pushed their probably abusive past away. Brock and
I always thought we changed Winnie and Pooh into more affectionate little
beings, but I think Winnie would say vice versa. The bond between the four
of us was so strong, everyone with their own personality. We thought
nothing would change, but then Pooh got sick on one of our travels and we
lost him. Winnie couldn’t stop crying and even though lots of people
think animals are not able to grieve, seeing Winnie made me realize
differently. It also made me realize that animals are a lot more like
humans than we like to admit. Winnie’s personality changed after that
experience – she became more lovable and understanding than ever before.
But then one day about 1½ years ago, she didn’t come to the door to
greet us and we knew that something was wrong.
Winnie
was hardly able to get up and all the love in the world didn’t change
it. Finally the vet told us that she was suffering from kidney disease and
would probably not be with us for very long. Lots of visits to the cat
hospital and sometimes spending days without her, made us realize how much
her presence adds to our life. In the Fall of 1999, we were on our way to
the vet thinking that we wouldn’t come home with Winnie this time, as
she was not moving her hind legs anymore and the last thing we wanted was
for her to suffer. But our vet said no, take her home, give her potassium
fluids and lots of love and see what happens.
With
our bicycle trip approaching, we had such a hard time deciding whether to
take Winnie or to leave her with someone we trusted. As we all know, she
came with us and is doing really well for a cat lady of 14. She enjoys the
comforts of the Marriotts she is allowed in, but she also loves the
camper, especially when Jonathan - her new friend - drives it. Slowly but
surely she has worked her way into his heart as she did with the rest of
us, without words but with a consistency of character that I aim for. She
shows excitement every time we enter the camper and she knows when to sit
or lie beside us when we don’t feel 100%. She forgives us when we step
on her tail or when we don’t spend enough time with her, but she also
possesses a strong assertiveness that we never take personally. Winnie for
me is kindness in action and I am so happy that we have her in our
lives.”
Brock’s
Reflections From the Road
“This
certainly was a full day of emotion and adventure. We were invited to stay
at a beautiful park (the Indiana Dunes State Park – thank you Stephanie)
where we
enjoyed
showers (yahoo!!) and after a great night’s sleep I was up at 6am for
the scary ride into Chicago. USA Today just had a feature article on the
cities in the U.S. with the most corruption, poverty and pollution. We
just cycled through one of the cities: Gary, Indiana. I asked Wilma not to
ride today, as Chicago and the surrounding areas are so hectic.
I
went through Gary and was filled with sadness – it is such a depressed
area. East Chicago wasn’t much better. I stopped and asked directions
from a tired and worn looking black woman sitting on her broken down porch
at 9:00 in the morning. She lit up when I stopped. At 36 years of age she
lived in the same house she was born in, with her children and sister. Her
world is small and full of abuse – she “works on the street” and her
life will undoubtedly be short – her body and mind have deteriorated but
she still had a very warm heart. I asked her if I could take her photo –
she was thrilled. I told her of our journey and her mouth dropped open in
amazement. Her world is about one square block and I could sense her
slight tinge of hope that there could be a positive side to life. I sadly
rode away.
I
was soon swallowed up by the huge high-rises of Chicago and I immediately
focused on visiting Harpo Productions (Oprah’s studio). I went to a side
entrance and introduced myself to some wonderful, warm people and told
them about our journey. They seemed very interested and I said, “Could
you please pass on some information to the right people in Production?”
They said, “You’re talking to the right people.”
I
then headed out to the Chicago Tribune newspaper. As I arrived in front of
the building, it started raining hard and my wheel got caught in a rut. I
went flying! This was my first fall of the trip and it could have been
serious. My leg hit the sharp edge of a marble structure, opening up a
huge gash and I was told by a doctor to get an x-ray for a possible
fracture and stitches. I passed on both. I did get it bandaged up,
however. Then I stopped at the Village Cycle Center where Ben and his
staff fixed my injured bike – it was a huge shop and word soon spread
about our trip. Everyone seemed impressed and everyone was so helpful and
concerned. From there it was a long and tough ride to meet everyone at the
campers – I cycled through rush hour traffic, a lightening storm, crack
houses and returned exhausted, but deeply moved by the many thoughtful and
kind people I met along the way.”
Many
Acts of Kindness…
- To Ray, the manager and Tenisha, our super server at the Pump House Grille in
St. Joseph, Michigan – thank you so much for treating us to such a tasty meal! We
celebrated Chris’ 25th birthday with spectacular food in a great atmosphere. It was
such a fun night for all of us *
- To the beautiful body workers at the Holistic Alliance in St. Joseph, who had us
floating out of their massage rooms, thank you for your hands-on kindnesses. The
Birthday Boy loved his massage and gosh knows that Brock certainly needed his…
Wilma was amazed by her Healing Touch session. You are all making such a difference
in people’s lives. Thank you, thank you.
- Our birthday celebration would not have been as festive, had we not showered (!!!)
At the WCA in St. Joseph, Katie was running the gym for the first time on her own and
she did her first act of kindness as a Manager by letting our team use her showers.
Thank you Katie :o)
- To Mark Ravenscraft and his staff at the Downers Grove Suites in Chicago,
thank you for gifting us with the gorgeous rooms at your hotel! We even had living
rooms in our suites where we were able to visit with Andrea who came to stay with
us for four days (we loved having Andrea here! A friendly face from home). Thank you
to everyone at the hotel for making our stay in Chicago so wonderful.
A “Thee First” Society
“It’s late fall…I’m driving out to school…admiring the leaves…just another easy
morning. Suddenly I catch the message on the car ahead and, jolted awake,
I leap out of my morning daze and into the most delightful and absorbing fantasy…my
imagination soaring!
It’s just a bumper sticker, but the words trigger a rush of excitement and wonder.
What do they mean?
‘PRACTICE RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS’
Random kindness? The idea didn’t compute. I had visions of strangers spontaneously
reaching out to help strangers…acting anonymously…without recognition or reward.
I saw masses of people giving favors to those who hadn’t earned them…or giving in
greater measure than was deserved. I imagined a world where everyone lightened up;
where foolishness was fun; where helpfulness replaced selfishness; where kindnesses
were traded freely without anyone keeping score.
Random kindness seems foolish on one level. This is supposed to be a materialistic, ME
FIRST society, isn’t it? Practicing random kindness doesn’t make sense. But practicing
random kindness does make sense…good sense…to many recipients out of the
business-as-usual, ME FIRST way of viewing one another. Plus, one kind deed
frequently prompts ripple kindnesses. For the first time since the 60’s, a growing
underground is challenging the wisdom of the ME FIRST view with an alternative,
THEE FIRST approach. Indeed, the divergence of the ME FIRST and THEE FIRST
camps is producing a new generation of revolutionaries: people dedicated to warming
the globe with kindness, courtesy, frivolity, and beauty.”
From the book Guerrilla Kindness
A Manual of Good Works, Kind Acts and Thoughtful Deeds
-
Given to me as an act of kindness from my friend, Amy Dauphinee
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