Day Four: The Lord is your shade at your right hand.

Day Four:  After yesterday's craziness and fortune I have to say I rested very well at the Tee Pee Motel.  I understand more clearly a major difference between the Camino de Santiago which I cycled in Spain and this Camino Real de Texas.  Setting up and breaking down camp each day is a major time burden.  It slows you down on both ends; Breaking camp, there’s little time to get started when the air is cooler in the morning.  And arriving and setting up gives even less time to rest the body.  Staying at the Tee Pee last night and at the Sportsmen’s Motel, Eagle Lake have made that clear to me.  Learning as we go.  But you pay for the convenience.  Motels versus tent sites are a significant difference.  Hostels like in Europe would facilitate this type of recreation.

Another difference is the lack of frequent accessibility to water and food.  I guzzle water like it’s…water.  I have a regular water bottle that fits on my bike rack and a 6 liter bag of water in the trailer.  Without that I’d be up the proverbial dry-creek.  I am greatly thankful for Freddy in Guy and Raymond along FM 1301? who bought be a bottle of cool water in town and brought it back to me.  What a gracious thing to do! 

The ride today started out great.  I was fueled with oatmeal I cooked with the coffee pot water.  I got out early and it was cool and calm.  There’s a plethora of Baptist churches out here to stop and pray the Divine Office.  So I do.  Coming out of Wharton I really wanted to stop at Buccees but I didn’t need to and didn’t want to backtrack a couple hundred yards so I turned north. 

Along the way there were some sweet dog’s (beagle mutts I think) that curiously watched me approach.  Then ran with me along the way.  It was fun.  Their tail wagging as they raced alongside in the grass.  As I watched them I was ambushed by another bullish dog whose color blended into dry grass along the road.  I didn’t even see him before he started his threatening bark.  Maybe five feet away and closing he scared the crap out of me.  He’s lucky he didn’t get pepper sprayed.  He disrupted my happy mood for a moment. 

Then I got back to thinking and praying about friends and family who are sick and need healing.  I pray they will feel God’s love and presence in their struggles and sorrows.  And may God heal them.  Through doctors, caregivers, and miracles may God heal them.  At this point I had a conversation with God about the purpose of prayers.  There are theological arguments about whether an outcome can be changed by prayer.  That’s because we attribute to God omniscience and immutability.  That is, that he knows everything that is going to happen and he is unchangeable.  These are usually comforting teachings for the little things.  Decisions we have to make about our lives' directions.  But when it comes to suffering these opening a painful understanding about God.

How could prayer change what is inevitable?  I am at an understanding that God does not change what might happen in response to prayers when someone is sick.  Rather we change when we pray.  When praying with an open heart and mind we become aware of what God is doing.  If it’s healing, it’s God. Praise the Lord!  If it’s death and entrance into heaven, it’s God. Praise the Lord!  "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.  Blessed be the Name of the Lord."  (Some where in the Book of Job.)

So if God's will is immutable why ask at all?  Prayer (conversation with God) brings us to a peace that brings our will in line with the will of God.  I think of Jesus in the garden. “Let this cup pass from me, yet not my will.  But thy will be done.”  Prayer brings us in line with God.  This is hard, and I’m afraid I’m too tired to think through what this means for people who are suffering.  When you believe in God you have to be prepared to let go of the things and people you love the most.  Better stated: you have to be prepared to give those things over to God.  Eventually we will lose them.  None of us lives in this world forever.

The last ten miles into Eagle Lake were horrible.  At the FM 1301/FM 201 JCT I was met with a nasty headwind.  On a walking day or standing still it would have been bliss.   But not riding into it. If I stopped pedaling I was standing still.  What should have been an hour took 1hr and forty five minutes.  That’s when Raymond brought me the water. Bless his soul.  It gave me hope because it was still cold when he handed it to me.  It made me think of the dove that brings back the olive leaf to Noah telling him that the water was receding. (Picture from my childhood bible). 

Sitting that long in the saddle is painful for me. All I could think of was that Jesus’ pain was much greater than this.  Lord help me.  So my thoughts turned to my sin.  My selfishness.  Would I have been/Have I ever been as thoughtful as Raymond? Or as wonderful as my ever patient wife? God help me to be.

I’m in a motel again and thankful.  I’m going to try to crash the public swimming pool behind the hotel’s fence.  But now my clothes are drying. They smell terrific.  Blessings all!

Day Three: When it rains it pours, or God was very good to me

Day 3: Though I was insect free inside my tent for two nights the high pitched buzzing from mosquitos can drive you crazy.  That’s one of the most annoying sounds I can think of.  I tolerate being bitten on the ankles and arms but when they buzz by the ear I want to go Kung Fu on those mosquitos. I can’t tell how many of them were out there but it sounds like close to a billion. 

I cleared out of my campsite late.  Lugging all this camping gear is a bit of a hassle.  It’s a big difference from riding the Camino Frances.  Every night your lodging is taken care of. It’s easy to find a place to get a sandwich or snack.  It used to be that way (I think) in America.  When the US routes went through all these small towns.  Then the interstates and big cities drew people away. 

I started the morning with Morning Prayer at 9. ( I need to start earlier).  Ate an apple and pecan bar.  I checked out of the state park with full water a long ride ahead but with a good route planned.  I found some county roads that were relatively well paved asphalt but coarser grained.  Before I hit Texas 36 I stopped for the Noonday office.  Making good time I hit 36 to Guy, Texas and was about to make the turn south toward Wharton on FM 1994.  That’s when the blow out happened.

So here I am sitting at the Shell station typing up the day’s events and waiting for my wife.  A few helpful folks got me water and pointed me to the Shell station is.  If you ever want a good burger I suggest the Guy Food Mart Shell station at Texas SH 36 and FM 1994. Waiting and Waiting.

Kate saved me.  She is the best.  Not only did she come get me but she also bought a new trailer.  I think I’ll like this new double axel trailer better.  It’s more stable.  I waiting for several hours while Kate worked behind the scenes to help keep me going. She picked me up and we began down the road following my original route.

Guess what!  My route that I used multiple apps to route would have lead me down miles and miles of no outlet and dead end roads that would have me cross private property.  This blow not only was just a mile from the gas station kept me from miles and miles of back tracking.  I stayed calm even when I knew this big malfunction.  I had a major blow out, air csartridge malfunction.  And God was great to me today.

Day Two: Alligators and drying out

Day two I decided I was pretty achy from the long ride yesterday and I need to dry out a bit so I decided to stay at Brazos Bend.  I spent the day praying and relaxing.  Breakfast was an apple and Nature Valley pecan bar.  It was delicious.  After a long morning I had to ride down to the park headquarters in order to renew my campsite by 2:00pm.  I ate lunch.  Pre-packaged Bumble Bee Tuna and Crackers was either really delicious or I was really hungry.  I ate two of them.

After lunch I hightailed it to park HQ.  The ride was easy without the trailer behind me.  I spotted about 50 keys on the side of the rode, but had no way of carrying them on the ride.  When I got to the HQ everything went smoothly a renewed for another night.  I reported the keys and they sent someone to go check it out.  I ran into him on the road on the way back.  It was likely that contractors doing construction work on the cabins had dropped them off the truck.

I took the scenic road back with time for a peaceful rest on a bench listening to the alligators click and moan.  I got back to camp in plenty of time to “cook” some soup (chicken broth and noodle) mostly salt with no meat.  That’s probably not the best for replenishing nutrients.  Shower, writing, Evening Prayer, and bed down early before the mosquitos come.  Long ride tomorrow.

Day One: Wide roads and friendly traffic

Yesterday I started out about mid-morning as opposed to early.  The night before I was still packing and getting things ready. I stayed up late.  I should remember that trips like this ought not to be scheduled on the cusps of Sunday worship which is already exhaustive for most clergy.

Leaving the house and my neighborhood was a little odd.  Everything around me was so familiar I didn’t quite feel like I was going on a long trip, just a bike around the same places I’ve seen and been to before.  The only thing worth noting was that I was facing a light headwind which I never care for on a bicycle.

As I turned down FM 521 I was coming closer to unfamiliar territory.  I’ve ridden down this road once before but driven down it several times to go to the state park and to take MK to her horse riding lessons.  In most places it was a very comfortable road to ride on.  Broad shoulders except for when a turning lane was created.

I passed the prison and thought of the folks in are church that supported ministry there for so long.  As I type this it occurred to me I wished I had thought to pray for them.  Salvation and a new beginning for all of them.  I haven’t a clue what it’s like for them. Next time.

Along the road I have to say that I was relatively calm when it came to traffic.  Not that I was peaceful.  Just that I didn’t feel much pressure from motorists.  In fact most of them gave me wide berths whenever possible and no one came too close.

Most of that road was familiar so since the map indicated an alternate route I chose it. Sandy Point Rd CR??  Was a pleasant surprise.  Three different Baptist churches dotted the trip down a shaded corridor of live oaks dripping with Spanish moss.  It was the best part of the day really.  I stopped at Pilgrim Baptist Church to say the Noonday Office.  I hope they don’t mind a little liturgy.  And I ate the last slice of pizza from two dinners before.

The only touchy moment along the road was when I was passing a small mobile home.  There had been a few occasions when dogs had ran out to greet me or chase me off as it goes.  But to this point they were always hindered by well-built fences keeping them in.  On this occasion a white bullish looking dog was charging toward me and had made it under the fence barking and threatening me to get off his road.  That’s when I blasted two quick bursts of my air horn at him.  The first startled him and the second stopped him in his tracks.  As I kept pedaling down the road I kept my eye on him.  He just sat there dazed and confused.  I half to admit I was pleased with myself at the outcome and the ingenuity. I’d never heard any cyclists suggest an air horn for this problem.  I was glad I didn’t have to hurt the dog.

After the relatively peaceful ride along Sandy Point I hit FM 14?? for the final long stretch of the ride.  It was more of the same trucks and cars.  I did cross the Brazos river and noted the access road that went down to the river underneath the bridge.  I was tempted to stop and camp there but being alone I didn’t feel it was terribly secure so I continued on to Brazos Bend State Park.

At FM 762 I stopped at a local station to sit on a picnic table and eat a snack. I was pretty tired so I laid down on the table and took in the cool breeze.  In the distance was thunder and I knew I would have to run from the storm.  But it was so comfortable I stayed a while longer.

The rest of this is very predictable.  I rolled into the state park checked in (bought a well-earned coke which I guzzled) and headed toward my campsite.  The rain came on a long stretch of the park access road.  I was drenched.  Most of my gear stayed dry.  The rain let up.  I set up my campsite and bedded down for the night.  Other than an apple I was too tired to eat.  And the rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down all night.