| It was late summer of 1976 and my girlfriend of two | | | | trek from British Columbia all the way to Quebec and |
| years had just broken off our relationship. We had | | | | then back through Ontario, Canada, I could feel God's |
| been together for a couple of years and had talked | | | | presence. I knew that He placed me in other people's |
| about marriage after college. I did not realize that her | | | | path for them to help me in my journey of |
| influential parents had different ideas for their daughter, | | | | self-discovery and spiritual healing. |
| a beautiful strawberry blond with more freckles than I | | | | He provided resources for me to have work in |
| could count. | | | | Denver, Colorado where I was able to visit such |
| I was heart-broken and felt very alone. I knew that I | | | | beautiful places as Boulder, and Estes Park, a little |
| would not find peace about this breakup until I felt fully | | | | tourist town built into the side of the mountain like a |
| connected with God. | | | | Swiss village in the Alps. |
| Growing up in an orphanage, I had no family to turn to | | | | I found work in Los Angeles where I lived in a garage |
| for emotional support, so I decided the best way to | | | | of a church that Debbie Boone attended and the |
| reestablish the foundation of my faith was to fully | | | | church group helped me find employment delivering |
| place myself in His hands. I decided I needed to take a | | | | Indian rugs around the city. While there, I had the |
| break from college and go on a spiritual journey which | | | | opportunity to collect autographs from a number of |
| could also lead me to finding myself again. | | | | movie stars such as Cybil Shepard, Clu Gulager, and |
| I purchased a small backpack, a yellow poster board | | | | Tommy Smothers. |
| that I could fold into three sections, a package of | | | | I experience miracles, large and small, on this trip. |
| eight-inch stencils for lettering my "destination signs" | | | | While working in Denver, painting houses, I took a trip |
| and started hitch-hiking across America. | | | | up to Golden, Colorado. It was still very dark and I was |
| I had two hundred and fifty dollars in my pocket and | | | | sitting on a mountain road side high above the Denver |
| was armed with a wobbly faith that the Lord would | | | | skyline enjoying the distant city lights. I stood up, and |
| provide any and all of my needs for food and lodging | | | | just as I was about to take another step, a car passed |
| along the way. I also realized that this could be a | | | | by and illuminated the place where I was about to |
| dangerous journey but felt somewhat reassured that | | | | place my foot. What I saw was approximately a 500 |
| God would be there, keeping me safe. | | | | foot drop to the rocks below. I gave thanks to God |
| After using the stencils I had purchased to make my | | | | and for the angel He sent to make me hesitate in |
| destination signs indicating each major city I was | | | | taking that step. |
| heading towards, I began walking to the interstate | | | | Before going down into Tijuana, Mexico I was warned |
| somewhere in central Florida. When I arrived at the top | | | | by the church group to be careful about young |
| of the entrance ramp I held up my sign while keeping | | | | Mexican children who would try to pick your pocket |
| my weight evenly distributed on both feet and smiled | | | | and, if you grabbed them, you would be arrested until |
| without grimacing from the sun shining in my face. | | | | you posted bail. Supposedly, this was another way to |
| I had seen many hitch-hikers over the years and most | | | | separate the Gringo from his money. |
| of them slouched, held up a thumb, and did not appear | | | | God was again watching over me and I did not have |
| like the type of person I would want to pick up so I | | | | any trouble while in Tijuana, but I was cautious and did |
| maintained the image of a clean-cut, nicely dressed | | | | not stay long. |
| college student with a neatly printed bright yellow sign | | | | Throughout my trip across Canada, it was forty |
| that motorists could read from nearly a quarter of a | | | | degrees below zero. |
| mile away. | | | | I had purchased a goose-down nylon covered jacket |
| It worked. | | | | with a hood along with heavy gloves and boots. It |
| A business man, who was traveling to a business | | | | seemed like the time period between rides took much |
| meeting, stopped and gave me a ride. He said, "Nice | | | | longer in Canada and I could often see forty-feet high |
| sign. I could see you long before I got to where you | | | | snow drifts as I awaited my next 'guardian angel' to |
| were standing. Since you looked like a nice person, I did | | | | pick me up. |
| not mind picking you up to help me drive." | | | | Suddenly it occurred to me that, if God had not been |
| So, this is how I started my ten-thousand mile, | | | | watching over me, I could have frozen to death. |
| six-months long trek across America, stopping in cities | | | | After six months, and ten thousand miles of traveling, I |
| only for a few days to make money for food, and | | | | finally found my way back down to Florida, relieved |
| then onto the interstate again to my next destination. | | | | that I did not need that goose-down jacket any longer. |
| Each ride I received I always thanked the person for | | | | In the beginning of my journey I felt lost but, as I |
| stopping. Most were families, or business people that | | | | continued my travels, my faith and sense of |
| wanted someone to help them drive, or to converse | | | | connection with God continued to grow. So much did I |
| with to pass the time. Some were truck drivers who | | | | feel this that, when I returned to college, I was full of |
| were impressed that someone would go to all the | | | | enthusiasm and hope for the future knowing, if the |
| trouble to make such a neatly printed sign. | | | | Lord could place so many wonderful people in my path |
| It was impressive how nice the people were. The | | | | to help me in my trip around the U.S., Canada, and |
| "scary or creepy people" would just look at me and | | | | Mexico that I could accomplish just about anything. |
| keep on going. When this happened, I would utter | | | | Over the years, as I graduated from college, two |
| under my smile, "Thank you Lord for encouraging that | | | | graduate programs, and establishing my own family, I |
| person to keep going". | | | | knew that God was with me, and would never leave |
| In each U.S. city, my excursion to Mexico, and the long | | | | me lost in America. |