WALKING ROUTE 66

Feeling Grateful When You Find Blessings in Disguise

You never know the people who might bring you blessings.

I spent the night before under a bridge because there was an 80% chance of rain. My inner voice said not to worry, but my rational voice led me under the bridge. The rains never came.

I am on this trip to learn to trust myself, lesson learned, again.

I woke up to a beautiful sunrise. For the first time, I used the phrase “What a gorgeous life.” It became my morning mantra for the rest of the trip.

What a Gorgeous Life.

This is what I woke up to.

Sonic was the only restaurant in town. I had some breakfast and headed out toward Catoosa, OK.

As I approached the Blue whale, a famous Route 66 landmark, it started to drizzle. There was a large strip mall just down the road from there. China One sounded like an excellent place to get lunch. General Tso’s chicken, fried rice, and an egg roll is what I had. They were kind enough to let me hang out till the rain subsided.

When I left at 6:30 PM, it was still drizzling, but the heavy rain had stopped for the time being. I wanted to get someplace where I can spend the night. An hour later, I came to the intersection of old Route 66 and its nemesis, Interstate 44. There were plenty of places there. I went to a Mcdonald’s and hung out there till the rains finally stopped around 11 PM. I found what looked like a “home” for some homeless people under the I-44 bridge. I parked my stroller a little way from them and called it a night.

As I think back and ponder.

As I look back, I feel a sense of gratitude for the life I’ve had so far. Though I was not technically homeless, I had all the appearances of it, and many times that’s how people saw me when they reached out to help me.

As I left the next morning, I put a couple of cans of chili and a five-dollar bill next to the couple whose “home” was an indication of safety for me that night. I knew they were living there, which meant that I wouldn’t be bothered by the police that night.

Everyone serves a purpose in life. As I mentioned in, I am a bum; there are people whose purpose in life may be to provide an opportunity for others to practice generosity. Who knows? Who am I to judge? I am grateful I was able to pay it forward.

Stay blessed and be happy, my friends.

Day 68: Rain on My Parade (Original blog post).

Just for fun.

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Rasheed Hooda is a published author who has contributed to many of Medium’s top Publications; The Startup, The Ascent, P.S. I Love You, Rogues’ Gallery, and ILLUMINATION, to name a few. He is also a Top Writer for several topics. If you like his work, buy him a cup of coffee, he drinks a lot of it.