Elvis Has Left The Bldg! Left Quincy And Just Arrived Via Train In Galesburg, IL

Yesterday afternoon I spoke for the third time before a Catholic Men's Group. We all drank various bottles of ale and talked of matters of the Spirit and of the issues of general living.

Randy the banker, Dennis the entrepreneur, Mike Bickhaus the attorney, Mike the business owner and "Doc" the physician made up yesterday's group.

The men awarded me a new windbreaker noticing that mine had obviously seen brighter days and was ripped in multiple places. And then quite unexpectantly, "Doc" presented me with a lightweight hand axe or tomahawk with a razor sharp edge. This axe was to replace the one I had carried for a few days when I started out on my walking journey back 2 years ago.  It simply weighed too much,so, somewhere between Banner and Lewistown, IL I slipped my it inside the end of a metal guardrail hoping to retrieve it sometime in the future after I finished my walk.

But, when Jim Burns drove me to Morton, IL last week, we stopped along the way to see if my axe was still inside the guardrail. We inspected 3-4 sections of guardrail and came up empty. So, either I checked the wrong ones or someone discovered my cache and appropriated it for their own use.

No matter. The axe was just a tool nothing more. But, "Doc" took it upon himself to replace it for the continuation of my walk across America.

The group discussed what "born again" means and why being "born again" is necessary. Thinking perhaps the Catholic interpretation would be somewhat different than the Protestant version I was surprised by the close similarity in articulating the meaning of that phraseology especially as that doctrine related to our individual experiences in life.

Each one of these men discussed how important Christ and the spiritual life is to them. The guys didn't hold back in their comments. They were open and without pretense. They spoke more than I did allowing me to sit back, observe and actually be a part of their group.

As the hour wound down, we got up and bade each other farewell. Mike Bickhaus my good friend and fellow traveler wished me well and asked me to keep in contact. Dennis B gave me his business card and reminded me of the invitation he previously extended to me to come back to Quincy to attend a "Cursillo," a 3 day weekend Men's retreat...all at his expense.

"Doc" then invited me over for a supper of venison and green beans. Upon arrival at "Doc's"home I was introduced to his lovely wife, Donna, and their canine friend, Ollie.

It seems that Doc is a serious hunter as he has tracked and bagged bears in Alaska, turkey here in Illinois and pronghorn sheep out west. I was shown a stuffed black bear, 2 sword fish, sheep and deer trophies along with a magnificent stuffed tom turkey.

"Doc" is not only an accomplished hunter and physician but a carpenter, home builder and craftsman. He showed me some remodeling work he has done in his home showcasing oak trim, cabinets and Brazilian Cherry wood floors.

As involved as he is with work he still has the impetus to incorporate his spirituality both in his personal life and work life. He's a great example of living a wholistic as opposed to a segmented or fragmented life which was one of the topics that came up during our Men's Group meeting.

The day before, Jim and I went out for supper at a chicken place in Ursa, IL. We first drove over to Don(Mac) and Joyce McKinley's farm where we were introduced to another man named Don, a longtime McKinley family friend. Cathie, Mac and Joyce's daughter and her husband, Marvin Huber joined us for supper as well.

We all had a great time talking politics, religion and cracking jokes. After the meal some of us had strawberry pie and coffee.

Then it was back to Mac and Joyce's for a roundtable discussion focused primarily on Unity Church and what could be done to grow the church membership. Mac said it was the "message" that was important and that it needs to be communicated effectively. We all agreed on that. Mac then asked me what I thought could be done particularly to increase membership and visibility.

I talked of reaching out to the community both to opinion leaders and business people along with making and keeping relationships with townspeople meeting them where they are...much as I did and still do in Idaho Springs.

Jim Burns who sits on Unity's Board spoke eloquently about the need for leadership and being of one mind. He suggested that I come back in the near future and work in some capacity for the church. Don, the family friend lamented the limitations of the institutional church and vowed never again to step foot in another church while at the same time acknowledging that although not "religious" he is nonetheless spiritual.

I get that. That is the trademark of the millennia generation according to a recent Pew Poll. And, although Don is a baby boomer he has the same problem with structured religion that the younger generation has. "Church" has failed Don.

The group broke up at around 10:30pm and Jim and I drove back home talking all the way about how candid everyone was about what could be done for the future of Unity Church.

There has been but one evening the entire time I was in Quincy where I did not share a supper feast at someone's home. This two and half weeks has been a whirlwind of activity, fellowship and reconnection.

Monica brought her son, Dakota, over last night so I could see how much he has grown the last 2 years. He's fifteen now and looks solid with the build of a linebacker. It was good seeing him again. We spoke of walking to the Dairy Queen for our daily soda run when I stayed at Monica's and Dakota's home 2 years ago.

Monica took me out to a restaurant in Hannibal, MO a week or so ago and talked of how life has treated her the intervening 2 years. Monica has gone through trials and trouble but has remained whole and positive about her future. It was good being with her again.

Before, I forget, Mike B from the Men's Group invited me over for a supper of grilled NY Strip steaks along with grilled sliced potatoes which I had never had the pleasure of eating before. Afterwards, I was treated to angel food cake topped with fresh blueberries, strawberries and homemade whipped cream! Yummmm!

It was sad parting with Jim Burns, who has become my best friend in Quincy. As I have said many times before...life is about saying "hello" and "goodbye." So, this morning it was all about saying goodbye. Jim is like the older brother I never had but needed sorely. So many times the past couple of weeks we laughed at each other's foibles and stories until it hurt. I shall miss his loyal friendship and our good natured ribbing.

After a light breakfast, Jim drove me over to the railroad depot north of town and I gathered my 2 bags now definitely heavier than when I arrived. After hugs and goodbyes I boarded the northbound people train for Galesburg with a short stop in Macomb.

It was 6:15am when the train pulled out of the station and began its 2 hour serpentine coursing through the west central Illinois uplands with a heavy, thick fog rolling in and obscuring the lush greenery of a pastoral landscape coming alive with a spring time vengeance, the infantile corn plants shooting upwards through the rich, chocolatey black soil.

And, ensconced in my seat on the west side of the train with the echoing shrill of the train whistle announcing the arrival of yet another rural intersection with a township blacktop, a loneliness that only train whistles seems to invoke crept over me. Thoughts and memories of all my yesterdays especially those spent with my children when they were young cropped up unexpectedly creating within me a sullen spirit...quiet and melancholic.

Traveling by train brought to mind my walk across the Great Plains. Although I could hear my fellow train travelers chattering back and forth like magpies or listening to their particular genre of music, I felt as if I was the only one onboard.

Since being divorced in early 2010 loneliness has been a thorn in my flesh which I have had to contend. It hits particularly hard during times like these when traveling alone across great distances where my thoughts are prone to ramble flooding my consciousness with memories, both good and not so good.

Now, I'm stranded here for the next 8 hours in Galesburg, an ancient Central Illinois railroad town, waiting for the infamous California Zephyr to  wisk into town and carry me back to Colorado.

Lincoln and Douglas contended in their fifth US Senate debate here in 1858 and Edgar Lee Masters and Carl Sandburg both had ties to Galesburg as well. President Reagan also lived here for a short time too as his father, a shoe salesman, flitted town to town losing and getting jobs because of his drinking

I'm using my time as a captive in the middle of nowhere to write and to catch up on my reading. I will soon be headed over to the old antique place downtown to pick through their dusty old books to see if I can dig up some treasures. Then, it's off to the "Cornucopia" for a cup of coffee and a slice of pie as is my custom when visiting Galesburg. I have been coming here intermittently for the past 20 years either on business or because of days like this...traveling back to my second home in Colorado.

I now look forward to whatever God has for me back in Colorado. I'm excited to reconnect with friends in Idaho Springs and to set my eyes back once again on the forested mountains and the gulches that surround the one horse town of Idaho Springs. And, I'm sure the lurking spirits hovering around the Lucas House took note of my long absence and miss the welcome smell of thick sliced bacon and farm fresh eggs frying in the early morning with coffee brewing slowly but surely in my beat up camp percolater over on the old gas stove.

Traveling between Illinois, my spiritual home and Colorado, my foster home makes me feel ambivalent towards both because while accepted in both only one place can be really home. And, that's what makes me feel bittersweet.

Pics are of the black bear "Doc" bagged in Alaska and "Doc" himself at supper yesterday and the statue of Abraham Lincoln at the Galesburg Railroad Station.

BR Schoenbein
May 18, 2016- Wednesday