The purpose of this page is to offer a list of blessings I see and receive as I travel on my pilgrimage. It is not to list the details but basically bullet points of those things where I see the Lord's hand in my journey. Unfortunately, I am starting this on Halloween 2012 so I am only remembering everything before and I'm sure I have forgotten several things. If there is anything you remember that I didn't please remind me so I can add it to this list.
Counting Blessings
1.
I
started running stairs to get in shape for football but we basically stopped
playing. I was thinking of quitting since it seemed like a waste of time when I
decided to make this pilgrimage. Running the stairs actually got me in shape
for the trip.
2.
I
bought a cheap backpack but when it arrived I knew it was too small to fit what
I needed. My son Zach sent me a large, good quality backpack for serious
backpacking. He also sent me some Almond M&M’s and two super duper fishing
spinners.
3.
Met
Kai in Barcelona who gave me a room to stay in, fed me very well, bought me a
bus tour of Barcelona for two days even though he would be there only one.
Offered to buy me a new pair of shoes but I declined.
4.
After
Kai left I was going to sleep on the beach when a band I was listening to on
the beach, after they finished playing, one of the band members offered to let
me stay in their squatters house for a couple days. Shared their food and let
me come and go as I pleased.
5.
Received
a revelation regarding vows and our responsibility when we make one.
6.
This
squatters house was too far from the post office where I was awaiting a letter
so I went back to the beach and was invited to stay at another squatters house
basically next to the post office. I stayed on their roof with my tent on a
mattress they had there. I slept comfortably there for 10 days and they also
shared their food with and power for my computer.
7.
Ingrid
send me over 100 Euros, which I was not expecting.
8.
My
eyes took a turn for the worst and my glasses were not working so I prayed for
the Lord to heal my eyes but later that day while hiking for miles out into the
country I came upon a pair of glasses that worked great for reading.
9.
I
was picked up by a young Muslim man 22 years of age. He had tears in his eyes
as he told me his brother died the week before, His girlfriend of 3 years
dumped him the night before and his manager just started micro managing him. He
had never met an American before and had many prejudices. However, after
talking to me a while he told me I was not a typical American then continued,
“I know, I’ve seen documentaries.” After dispelling all the propaganda he had
heard, telling him some of my beliefs and teaching him a few things, he said,
“Who would have known that today, when I would have been crying all day… I
would have been crying for the next two weeks but now I have met an American
Mormon who changed my life and I’m smiling.”
10.
A
woman in Beritz France who said she was Agnostic, asked me to stay another day
so she could talk to me the next day. We ended the conversation (the next day)
with her wanting a copy of the Book of Mormon and have missionaries come teach
her.
11.
In
Toulouse France, I was looking at a map on the wall trying to figure out where
to go when a woman asked if I needed help. She told me where to go but then
also asked if I had a place to sleep then offered for me to stay with her and
her boyfriend. My shoes were falling apart but new shoes were too expensive.
Just as my shoes could no longer be repaired and started hurting my feet, I
found shoes on sale half price.
12.
In
Llords I was given sanctuary for a week while I volunteered cutting their grass
for a week.
13.
Yani
picked me up and took me around to the French Riviera, let me stay in his hotel
room, bought me a very nice meal, spent time with me on the beach and took very
good care of me.
14.
Sara
was a woman with little income to survive on yet have me a lift a few
kilometres past her work so I would have a better place to hitchhike and
offered me money. I told her to keep it as she needed it but talk about the
widow’s mite.
15.
Received
several revelations I cannot relay.
16.
In
Italy Antonella gave me room and board for 2 months while healing from surgery.
She also gave me shoes, t-shirts, a dress shirt, and taught me true Christian
charity by her several examples. She also makes very little money but she took
her time off and spent all her money giving me a home life and showing me all
over Torino and surrounding areas as well as her friends. She also shared her
love with me and what a wonderful woman she was.
17.
You
wouldn’t think of having 40cm (about 16in) of intestine being yanked out of you
as a blessing but because of this I met Dominique and his family in the
hospital. We became good friends, they invited me to dinner and Dominique has
been reading the Book of Mormon and went to church once as well.
18.
Roberto
and Mari-Claude let me stay with their family for three weeks while I helped
their son Timothy with his hand made wall paper business, feeding me the entire
time and they paid me for the work as well.
19.
Sjlvia
Macchi translated my book, The Opportunity In Every Problem, in Italian and she
is a professional translator.
20.
Several
of Antonella’s friends invited us over for dinner and fun.
21.
Denis
and Martin (Zach’s in-laws) allowed me to stay in their house twice and took
very good care of me both times. The second time they allowed me to stay there
for several days to visit with my son. They let me go with them on a mini
vacation as well and bought all the food while I was with them. They also gave
me a few treats for my trip when I left.
22.
The
Chinese fishing reel I bought didn’t work and good ones are too expensive.
While in a sports store with Zach I found one for only 6 Euros.
23.
My
£10 tent from China was falling apart and I needed a new one. However, it was
out of season and I could not buy a new one if I wanted to. I didn’t pray for
it but only though, “how nice it would be if someone offered me a tent that was
better than the one I have and I could actually stretch out in it. Three days
later Peter Schneider gave me just such a tent.
24.
I
left my light rain jacket in Bordeaux and was suffering whenever I would use my
winter jacket because it was too hot but without it I was too cold. Peter also
gave me a zip up sweater he happened to have in his car as he was dropping me
off at the train station where he also bought me a train ticket to make sure I
made it Essen, Germany to see my friend Rhett Guter in the West Side Story.
25.
Rhett
Guter got me a free ticket to see his professional musical West Side Story. I
have never actually seen a professional musical before when I had money.
26.
On
the way to Copenhagen a guy I met on the train let me stay with him in his
apartment then also gave me about $10 then his friend asked me about my
pilgrimage and gave me about $100.
27.
I
needed extra padding because I was getting too sore sleeping on cement then
found a pad for only 3 Euros.
28.
Asked
Lionel for directions in Brig, Switzerland and he told me it would be best to
get the bus and that it would only be 2-3 Swiss Francs. I told him I have money
but haven’t exchanged any so he offered to pay my bus ticket. We went to his
house and talked a bit more then he offered to pay for a train ticket to the
first city in Italy. When he dropped me off at the station he gave me 10 Francs
for food.
29.
It
had rained so I didn’t want to set up my tent on wet grass or mud then found a
wide covering at the mall entrance where I could sleep until someone kicked me
out in the morning or later in the evening as there were workers there. I
needed to wait a little longer for a few cars to leave before I could go to
sleep (so I wouldn’t be spotted). I walked around in the drizzling rain when I
came across a stairway going down to the underground parking lot. At the bottom
the doors were locked and I didn’t feel the breeze as I did by the entrance. I
moved my gear down there to sleep. There ended up being a lashing storm with
very high winds that would have froze and soaked me but I lay comfortable not
feeling a breeze.
30.
I
have received dozens of lifts from very good people but I have also had several
missionary opportunities, sharing the gospel and improving my spirituality.
31. Received a revelation in regard to D&C
130:18-19 and my son.
32.
After
sitting at a toll booth from 7:00am to 1:30pm I prayed and said I would wait
until 2:00pm then start walking on the autoroute (freeway) where I knew nobody
would pick me up. 2:00pm came and still no lift. I was eating and figured I
would wait until I was finished eating then go. I had two bites of a carrot
left when two young men (Rick and Demetrius) on their way to rock climbing
training picked me up. They let me share a few gospel principles though they
didn’t believe in religion, and then gave me a couple candy bars to help me out
as well. However, they told me that they ended up taking a wrong turn and had
to come this way to get back on course or they would have never seen me.
33.
I
hike up the Alps to the Matterhorn. The hike was about 10 miles all uphill and
took me over 8 hours to do. The next day I had no pain in my muscles and was
able to continue as I needed.
34.
Received
a revelation indicating the things I needed to work on to perfect my soul.
35.
Heading
toward Torino I asked a man for directions and he told me where the cars would
drop me off was not good for hitchhiking. He then offered to buy a bus ticket
for me then decided to buy a train ticket into Italy for me as that would be
best. We went to his house and he gave me food and then when we got to the
train station he also gave me 10 kroners to buy food at the train station while
I waited.
36.
While
walking along a lake where nobody would give me a lift. A woman picked me up
for just a couple miles but she said, she didn’t know what it was about me but
she never picks up hitchhikers but for some reason she felt she needed to give
me a lift.
37. After walking over 20km when nobody
would give me a lift, Dino took me to Vicenza where I was able to help him with
a project in a nursery. He let me stay the night, fed me and when he dropped me
off at the train station, he bought my ticket to Milano, gave me a bunch of
food and 15 Euros to help me along.
38. Received a revelation regarding the
difference between the Lord’s will and commandments.
39. From Milan it was difficult getting
lifts to Turin. After a few short lifts (one of which a man also bought me
breakfast), a man picked me up that was going to get his daughter in Turin only
about a 15 minute walk from Antonella’s house.
40. With only 23 Euros left for the next
month, before she is paid, Antonella housed me again for a week, sharing her food, shower and home with me.
What a wonderful woman.
41. Received
a revelation explaining the nature of false prophets in these last days.
42. On
the way to Savona two men took me off the main roads into the mountain roads
and dropped me off in Alba. From there I only received 2 short lifts and ended
up walking about 30km (18 miles) before a young Romanian man gave me a lift. He
was only going a short distance leaving me 20km to go to get to Savona. He
decided to take me the rest of the way as it was near dark.
43. On
the way to Pisa, Sara, who gave me a lift, was interested in the gospel and
allowed me to send the missionaries and a Book of Mormon to her home.
44. Received
a revelation explaining the nature of why those who sin will perish, not only
in the next life but this one also.
45. Didn’t
think I would make it to Florence as it was dark and nobody picks you up after
dark. 2 Armenian men picked me up and took me an extra 20km further than they
were traveling so I could get into Florence. I made it to my destination with
20 minutes to spare.
46. Letizia
let me stay in her house an extra day though she could lose her house if she
doesn’t sell it soon, because she has very little money.
47. Instead
of 3:00pm, Sylvia went with me to church, in the rain, at 9:00am so I could
attend and find it. I ended up talking with an American (Dave) I met there for
nearly an hour after and Sylvia patiently waited to go home with me after.
48. The
missionaries went out of their way to travel with me and ride their bikes to
the bus stop I needed to get off, just to show me the way to Dave’s house. One
of the missionaries also gave me one of his bus tickets.
49. Dave
was trying to find a lift for me to Rome the next day but when he found nobody
was going he gave me the money for a ticket, invited me to his house for dinner
then invited me to stay the night with them.
50. Antonella
invited me to spend five days with her where she would show me around Rome, Naples
and the coast around Salerno which was about the most beautiful area of Italy.
She had friends to stay with and paid for many things giving us the opportunity
to enjoy the sites and each other’s company on a holiday.
51. In
Rome a gypsy stole my wallet. This may not seem like a blessing but to me it
was because it caused me to turn my faith to Heavenly Father to provide for me.
52. I
found out from my son that the gypsy may have inconvenienced me and took my
cash and pictures but they did not get the money out of my bank account so I
still have enough money to cover me for about 5 months if I continue to eat
simple and cheap.
53. A
guy who gave me a lift from Salerno to Naples tried very hard to speak to me
though he speaks no English. When he dropped me off he also gave me €10 and he
knows nothing about me or my trip so he must have been inspired to give me the
money as he just works for a company transporting fish and he has 4 small
children to care for.
54. I’m
sitting in a park writing in my computer on a bench when a woman came up and
offered me a bag of food. It was filled with sealed aluminum tins of cooked
carrots, flavored rice and bread. How she would know I needed food was beyond
me. Then another man left me with an unopened tin of pasta and sauce as well.
There are several people in the park and some that look much needier than I so
I just continue to be amazed how the Lord blesses me in time of need without my
asking.
55. While
praying for increased faith the Spirit gave me increased understanding on
faith. That a person shows faith by his actions and a man of faith would
basically not sin because he knows God will protect him, make him glorious and
so forth. Men sin because of their fears and thoughts of lack which go against
God, His power and his desires for men.
56. While
reading in Alma, was told the people will be taught the gospel in their own
language and the Spirit notified me that I would go to a people who speak my
language. I do not know yet what country that will be but I’m sure it will help
me to be more effective.
57. A
good friend from my high school years has just allowed me to start sharing the
gospel with her.
58. When
I was young it seemed animals and infants always loved me but when I became
older and grew a beard, it seemed all that suddenly stopped. I was missing the
love I felt back then and was tired of animals and infants acting fearful with
me so I prayed that I would be able to experience that again and for the last
week or two, toddlers are coming up to me and trying to talk to me (in Italian)
and play with me, infants smile at me and animals no longer bark at me unless I
am with someone else.
59. Received
a revelation explaining why Christ said a man who marries a woman who is
divorced is committing adultery.
60. At
McDonald’s in the Napoli train station the people were very rude to me. The one
3 miles away on the outskirts, saw me sitting outside on the edge of a plant
box working on my computer went out of their way to find someone who spoke
enough English to tell me to come in and sit in a comfortable spot and plug in
my computer. When I would ask a question, there staff of over 10 people would
stop and all try to help understand me as none of them spoke English.
61. Received
a revelation while reading 3 Nephi 15:10 that Matthew 5-7 is the new
commandments that replaced the Mosaic Law, which Christ fulfilled. Christ
fulfilling the Mosaic Law did not leave us without law.
62. Have
been trying for several days to get out of Naples but nobody would give me a
lift or even pull over to ask where I was going. Getting back to where I first
started I got online and Antonella offered to buy my ticket to Rome.
63. After my backpack was stolen someone left a small bag of food which provided my breakfast. Around lunch a man came and sat next to me in the train station eating McD’s. After finishing his sandwich he ate a few fries then decided he didn’t want any more so he ask if I would like them. I thanked him and then he took a small drink from his large cup then asked if I would like the rest. Lunch was provided. Later I was tired of sitting around inside the station so I went outside and there was a big marble ledge that I sat on and fell asleep. I was awoken by a police officer who said I couldn’t sleep there so I hopped down and reached up to get my tent and another bag of food was there. Dinner was provided. Still later I was talking to a young couple around a Christmas tree and as they were ready to leave they gave me 4 euros. That kept me in McD’s cheeseburgers for the next day until I made it to Antonella’s house.
64. When the Lord told me I still needed to humble myself, a few weeks before, I didn’t know what he meant because I thought I did that when I gave everything up and went on this pilgrimage. However, with my bag stolen and my computer and the loss of my book, scriptures shoes and so forth, that Sunday I couldn’t walk far on the cobblestone paths in slippers so I had to sit all day with nothing to read, no computer to work on, nowhere to go… it was the first time in my life I felt I had nothing to offer the world and the first time I felt truly humbled.
65. The US consulate gave me some nice Timberland shoes, a couple pair of socks, a shirt and sweater.
66. A woman’s charity paid for my emergency passport since my bank couldn’t figure out how to send me my money.
67. I was given free passage on the train to Turino.
68. Antonella provided me friendship, room and board again, as well as a few T-shirts, phone and computer so I could continue to work.
69. I went to the hospital for TB test and met Jane who, with her friend Gladys, is now receiving the missionary discussions.
70. I went to a clinic to get my diabetic medicine (provided to me free of charge) but also, was able to talk to the woman in charge from Peru who used to have missionaries over in Peru and now she would like to get involved in church again.
71. Another charity offered me a few more clothes.
72. I discovered 35 euros in the pocket of my shorts I forgot was there so I was able to buy socks, underwear and a few other items.
73. David Evertsen offered to pay me to help him with some marketing.
74. David’s wife Heather and their children invited me to stay with them for a week while we worked on their marketing and they were very hospitable, making me feel part of the family. Not only did they pay me, they also gave me dress clothes, a backpack, food, personal hygiene items and just about anything else I needed.
75. Letizia invited me over to her house for dinner and a visit. They allowed me to teach them a few principals of the gospel which made my day.
76. My golfing buddy, Stephen, asked for my bank account into so he could send money to help me get back to America. Please remember, I have never asked for anything other than a lift on this entire pilgrimage. Everything provided to me was done so out of the goodness of their hearts and probably a little whispering from the Spirit to help one of his servants.
77. I was invited to spend Christmas Eve with Letizia and the girls staying with her, and also Christmas with David and his family but I’m going back up to Antonella’s to spend it with her.
78. While in Salerno I remembered in my youth that children and animals seemed to love me and be drawn to me. Since I grew a beard in my 20’s kids and animals have feared me. I missed the love I felt from children and prayed that the Lord would take the fear from children that they may be drawn to me once again. The next day, I was in McD’s and a child came running to the back to talk to me and play with me. Many other children would look at me and smile. Babies now smile at me. In a clinic about a week ago and Nigerian infant was trying to get out of his stroller (pram) reaching for me to the surprise of his parents. A couple of days ago, Mallory, a three year old little girl whose family I was staying with gave me a big hug and called me buddy several times. Her mother told me that only her brother was allowed in her buddy club so I was deemed the second member of that exclusive club.
79. David bought by train ticket (Business class on a high speed train) back to Torino.
80. I just found out how much my friend Stephen put into my bank account. He paid my entire flight back to America! Now, just a few days before Christmas, a person, without even a request for money, takes it upon himself to give so much to a friend, who he knows he may never see again. Are people inspired to help others? Yes, they truly are!