Day 76

I slept in! I had missed morning Mass at Holy Ghost in town. I awoke and did a complete unpack, repack of the buggy. I checked out of the motel shortly after 9a.m. 

I met Adam outside a laundry matt. I offered him some cookies and he accepted! We started chatting and he was very interested in this journey. I offered him a few dollars and he accepted! 
His friend Joseph swung by and we all hung out there on the curb for a bit. I gave Joseph the extra pair of shoes I had. They were brand new, and just about his size. He accepted and was really thankful! We parted ways.

I started putting in the miles. It was rough, LA 182 south had no shoulder leaving Opelousas, and there wasn’t sidewalk most of the time either.  
It took me a couple hours to make it outside town. I stopped at a market to buy some breakfast.

By noon I had found shoulder. I upped my pace. I saw some beautiful things. 

I passed through Sunset and followed a frontage road on I49 for a few miles. There was very little shoulder, but less traffic than 182. Weighing the pros and the cons, I jumped back on 182 after a few miles.

I was making good ground. The shoes Bert had given me helped me glide along the shoulder. It was effortless. Around 3pm I was just outside Carencro.

I slowed my pace and walked through town. I was just a few miles outside Lafayette. I usually don’t approach cities in the evening, but I had a good feeling this time around.

I made it to the city limits.

I honestly can’t remember this guys name :(. He was asking for money by the interstate. I offered him some water bottles and he accepted. Him and his son were travelling and are from Washington state. They hope to visit the Grand Canyon someday. We talked about this journey for a bit, he asked me if I have been “flying signs.” I gave some money and we parted ways. He wished me luck and told me to be safe.

I made it to the city limits and high tailed it to Our Lady Queen of Peace for 5:30p.m. Mass. As I arrived, another tire went flat :(.

After Mass, we prayed a mother’s day novena. It was great! I met a lot of nice people from the parish.

I spoke with Fr. Hampton David after prayer looking for a safe place to stay. First thing out of his mouth was, “how about a hotel?” I was kind of stunned and accepted. We loaded up the buggy in his truck and headed over to the Days Inn.
He helped me out so much! He brought me to a Walmart so I could buy spare inner tubes for the buggy. He even gave me money to purchase them! Fr. Hampton just returned from a pilgrimage in Rome. We talked about his trip. He even attended a general audience with Pope Francis! 

 We returned to the church where the catechism class was having a home cooked meal. They were all so kind to me, and gave me a plate of dinner and dessert to take with me! 

Fr. Hampton had a game hauler, a two wheeled dolly crafted to haul game over hundreds of pounds. He let me check it out and offered for me to use it for travel instead of the buggy. It was well built, and had solid rubber tires, opposed to inner tubes. I wish I got a picture of it, it was crazy! It only had two wheels! He told me to think about it and to call him in the morning if I wanted it.
When Fr. Hampton Davis dropped me off at the Days Inn, he gave me more money and his card. He told me to call him if I needed anything. It was so overwhelming, a word I use often, but merciful people never cease to amaze me! 

I was up late chatting with two of my sisters on Facebook messenger. We even played basketball!