Hiking in Sandals
I have been thinking about a vacation. It has been awhile. Last year I was bitten by a brown recluse spider and spent most of the summer recuperating. It was quite painful and even now can be sensitive at times.
This summer my husband ended up in the hospital and had open heart surgery on the day we were scheduled to leave for the beach. He will be in rehabilitation until October so no summer vacation this year.
There are a lot of places I want to go and a lot of things I want to see, I have dreamt of going to Prince Edward Island in Canada since the 5th grade. Our teacher, Mrs. Eulalah Harris read us "Ann of Green Gables" and I have wanted to go to Avonlea and see Marilla ever since. And to have red hair.
The other place I want to go, and have been close to many times but never topped is the SPAM Museum in Austin Minnesota. This is probably due to being such a big Monty Python fan.
A few years ago we were riding on our motorcycle through New York on the way to Maine and I badly wanted to top at Leroy's House of Jello. Doesn't that picque the imagination? I imagine a house made our of Jello (it isn't). Of course they were closed as were passing through in the late evening.
The main trip I have contemplated is driving to Alaska, a mere 3,480 miles or 5,224 kilometers. Peru is only slightly further away than that in mileage.
During Bible times, I am not sure if people vacationed but they did travel. Perhaps to report for a census, to escape persecution, to go to temple, to visit relatives. They didn't get to choose whether to drive, get a Greyhound ticket, jump the rails on an Amtrak, or hit up the closest airport. Sometimes ship was a choice but mostly by foot. Some of the Apostles put a lot of miles on those sandals.
Peter was not the most widely traveled of the Apostles, it was most likely Paul, logging over 10,000 miles. I tried to do some calculations based on what is known about Peter's travels after the Resurrection.
In 30 AD Peter is in Jerusalem. He makes a trip to Samaria and then back home. About 85 miles. If you drive like me that is an hour and one speeding ticket. A little later he goes to Lydda, which is now Tel Aviv Airport. 48 miles. In my red Honda 2 hours and no ticket.
After he gets back home he gets an urgent request to come to Joppa. He goes and prays over a dead woman who comes back to life. Dorcus in Greek, or Tabitha. That trip he also sat down and ate with this "unclean" guy, Cornelius. He was a Gentile. Imagine, a Jew eating with a Gentile! 80 miles round trip.
Later he goes to visit his new buddy Cornelius so he can tell his friends and relatives about Jesus. He stays at his house! A Jew, staying at a Gentiles house! That was up the Mediterranean coast. 144 miles round trip. I hope when he got back someone gave him a good foot massage.
All of this was in ONE YEAR. An average healthy person can walk 12 to 20 miles in an 8 hour day. In my foolish youth I did a 20 Mile Walk-a-thon, came home and soaked in a hot bath and complained for a week. Peter was probably still fairly youthful at this point, maybe in his 30's or 40's. Lets give him the optimum of 20 miles per day. That's generous, because he wasn't wearing Nike or Adidas. There were no free refreshment stands staffed with volunteers passing out icy bottles of water. In the heat of the day, they probably found a shady spot for lunch and a rest setting off again in the cool of the late afternoon So, at best he walked over 20 days, 20 miles per day in that one year.
We don't know much more about his travels (correct me if I have missed something important) until he meets Paul in Antioch, which is 300 miles from Jerusalem. However we are not sure where Peter traveled from since he had been keeping his head down and may have been in hiding in Corinth or somewhere else. He and Paul had an argument. Not really surprising considering those two personalities.
Later he ends up in Rome, which is 1400 miles from Jerusalem. This is 66 AD and he is killed in Rome the next year. In an approximately 30 year span he traveled at least 2,700 miles, but most likely much more than just what we have a record of. The Apostles weren't vacationing, they were working to spread Gods word, the Good News. They were imprisoned and ultimately killed. They lived off the generosity of other Christians, and whatever work they could do.
Imagine walking from New York City to Portland Oregon. On dirt roads, with no bathrooms, no stores, buying food from landowners as you go.
If that appeals to you may I suggest hiking the Appalachian Train on your next vacation?
I am praying for you my friends, those who are weary from stress, battling health problems (Phil), grieving (Connie, Freda, JoAnn, Kay) Please pray for me also.
This summer my husband ended up in the hospital and had open heart surgery on the day we were scheduled to leave for the beach. He will be in rehabilitation until October so no summer vacation this year.
There are a lot of places I want to go and a lot of things I want to see, I have dreamt of going to Prince Edward Island in Canada since the 5th grade. Our teacher, Mrs. Eulalah Harris read us "Ann of Green Gables" and I have wanted to go to Avonlea and see Marilla ever since. And to have red hair.
The other place I want to go, and have been close to many times but never topped is the SPAM Museum in Austin Minnesota. This is probably due to being such a big Monty Python fan.
A few years ago we were riding on our motorcycle through New York on the way to Maine and I badly wanted to top at Leroy's House of Jello. Doesn't that picque the imagination? I imagine a house made our of Jello (it isn't). Of course they were closed as were passing through in the late evening.
The main trip I have contemplated is driving to Alaska, a mere 3,480 miles or 5,224 kilometers. Peru is only slightly further away than that in mileage.
During Bible times, I am not sure if people vacationed but they did travel. Perhaps to report for a census, to escape persecution, to go to temple, to visit relatives. They didn't get to choose whether to drive, get a Greyhound ticket, jump the rails on an Amtrak, or hit up the closest airport. Sometimes ship was a choice but mostly by foot. Some of the Apostles put a lot of miles on those sandals.
Peter was not the most widely traveled of the Apostles, it was most likely Paul, logging over 10,000 miles. I tried to do some calculations based on what is known about Peter's travels after the Resurrection.
In 30 AD Peter is in Jerusalem. He makes a trip to Samaria and then back home. About 85 miles. If you drive like me that is an hour and one speeding ticket. A little later he goes to Lydda, which is now Tel Aviv Airport. 48 miles. In my red Honda 2 hours and no ticket.
After he gets back home he gets an urgent request to come to Joppa. He goes and prays over a dead woman who comes back to life. Dorcus in Greek, or Tabitha. That trip he also sat down and ate with this "unclean" guy, Cornelius. He was a Gentile. Imagine, a Jew eating with a Gentile! 80 miles round trip.
Later he goes to visit his new buddy Cornelius so he can tell his friends and relatives about Jesus. He stays at his house! A Jew, staying at a Gentiles house! That was up the Mediterranean coast. 144 miles round trip. I hope when he got back someone gave him a good foot massage.
All of this was in ONE YEAR. An average healthy person can walk 12 to 20 miles in an 8 hour day. In my foolish youth I did a 20 Mile Walk-a-thon, came home and soaked in a hot bath and complained for a week. Peter was probably still fairly youthful at this point, maybe in his 30's or 40's. Lets give him the optimum of 20 miles per day. That's generous, because he wasn't wearing Nike or Adidas. There were no free refreshment stands staffed with volunteers passing out icy bottles of water. In the heat of the day, they probably found a shady spot for lunch and a rest setting off again in the cool of the late afternoon So, at best he walked over 20 days, 20 miles per day in that one year.
We don't know much more about his travels (correct me if I have missed something important) until he meets Paul in Antioch, which is 300 miles from Jerusalem. However we are not sure where Peter traveled from since he had been keeping his head down and may have been in hiding in Corinth or somewhere else. He and Paul had an argument. Not really surprising considering those two personalities.
Later he ends up in Rome, which is 1400 miles from Jerusalem. This is 66 AD and he is killed in Rome the next year. In an approximately 30 year span he traveled at least 2,700 miles, but most likely much more than just what we have a record of. The Apostles weren't vacationing, they were working to spread Gods word, the Good News. They were imprisoned and ultimately killed. They lived off the generosity of other Christians, and whatever work they could do.
Imagine walking from New York City to Portland Oregon. On dirt roads, with no bathrooms, no stores, buying food from landowners as you go.
If that appeals to you may I suggest hiking the Appalachian Train on your next vacation?
I am praying for you my friends, those who are weary from stress, battling health problems (Phil), grieving (Connie, Freda, JoAnn, Kay) Please pray for me also.
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