Date: 2004-06-06
From: Chatfield Shelter, VA

To: A Triple Coincidence
Miles today: 4.6

This morning as I stirred inside of the hammock, the sun was burning through the mist suggesting that the period of inclement weather had passed. I put on my dry pair of socks, knowing that even if the weather did revert back to rain, I would be ending the hike at a motel with a coin operated laundry. Back on the trail, the bright ambient light in the forest was darkened where the trail passed through a tunnel of dense rhododendron shrubs. I have passed through many of these tunnels, but this one intrigued me. I stopped, unshouldered my backpack, and removed my camera. It was so dim inside the tunnel that I had to rest the camera on the backpack in order to expose a photo at a slow shutter speed and avoid camera movement.The trail wound through a succession of pastures. In some of them, the grass was tall, sometimes reaching up to the height of my waist. Along a few stretches, the wet grass leaned over the trail almost obliterating it from view. Within a short period of time, my shoes, socks, and feet were soaked again. Oh well.At a road crossing, the trail passed by a historical, one room school. On the front door was a sign which read, "Hikers Welcome."I placed my backpack outside the door and stepped into a moment in history. Two rows of wooden desks stretched from the back of the room to near the front where the teachers once stood. A blackened stove was situated in the center of the room between the desks. Affixed on the wall was an American flag which contained 44 stars. The door which I had entered contained glass windows. I walked back to it and looked into the glass at my reflection. I wanted to see if my forehead was bruised from that incident yesterday which remained fresh in my mind. My forehead looked okay although it remained mildly sore.Each desk in the classroom contained an identical spelling book. I reached for a book on the second desk from the rear of the row to my right. The title of the book was McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader. By random selection, I placed a finger into the pages and opened up the book. I looked at page 94 and reacted with amazement. There was a chapter on that page which began with the title, "The Noblest Revenge." What a coincidence it was that I chose a chapter about revenge after just examining my forehead and recalling yesterday's comical act of revenge with the rifle and the puddle. This was the first of three coincidences.This book, I realized, was different from most of the other books in the room. It was not a spelling book even though its cover resembled the spelling books on the other desks. Within this book was a collection of essays about virtuous behaviors. I sat down at a desk and read the chapter. It was about a boy whose bamboo cane had been destroyed by the "wicked son of Mr. Robinson." The boy sought revenge against the wicked son, but in the end, performed an act of kindness to the wicked son. When this happened, the wicked youth apologized for his previous deed.I descended a final pasture and approached the motel which was located near an interstate highway and some railroad tracks. The traffic on the highway combined with a moving train to create an unpleasant din.At the motel, I met a thru hiker named Freebird who lives in Hawaii. We walked over to a nearby restaurant and ate lunch together. I asked him if he had stopped in at that historical school.He replied in the affirmative and described his visit. While hiking toward the school, he had seen a few deer grazing in the pastures late in the day. He was so impressed by the scenery¢a creation of God¢that he contemplated how even more beautiful God himself must appear. With those thoughts in his mind, he came upon the old schoolhouse.Inside the classroom, he randomly approached the same desk which I had approached and picked up the same book which I had chosen¢the only book that was not a spelling primer. This decision on his part represented coincidence #2.He randomly opened the book and a poem appeared by a philosopher whose last name is Locke. The poem lauded the beauty of nature¢a creation of the All Mighty¢and stated that God himself was even more beautiful than nature itself. This sentiment was precisely what Freebird had been contemplating before his arrival. It was coincidence #3.We strolled over to a nearby Dairy Queen and ordered ice creams for desert. There, we were joined by Jazz, another thru hiker who was passing through. Freebird told us that he is hiking at a relaxed pace and is spending ample time visiting trail towns. Jazz also expressed a similar outlook, saying that he had no intention of rushing through his thru hike.Freebird made another interesting observation. He said that we were hiking in a void, or more to the point, that we were spaced on the trail between other groups, or social networks, of hikers. Within this void, there were few hikers on the trail.I agreed with him. I told him that I had become friendly with people in four such groups. Two of these groups were ahead of me and two were behind.That said a pair of familiar faces showed up at the motel. Zip Off and Kato arrived and we chatted briefly. They had to get into their support vehicle and drive back to Damascus to pick up their other vehicle.In the parking lot, I met a father and daughter from Connecticut who were thru hiking with the support of a single car. Each day, they slack pack in opposite directions. When they meet up on the trail, the person with the car keys hands them over to the other person. Later in the day, the person with the keys drives the car and picks up the other person at a road crossing. They told me that this single car support method creates aggravation and they will soon be hiking in a traditional manner without the vehicle.I had intended to thumb a ride to nearby Atkins and buy food supplies. But today is Sunday and the market is closed. I will have to obtain the food tomorrow morning before resuming the hike.My replacement hiking shoes have arrived at the motel. Thank goodness!