Downtown 7/20/13

"If you insist on clinging to your precious self, God is compelled to keep you in the wilderness longer.  You will then experience more wilderness defeats to take you to the end of yourself." --Watchman Nee, The Secrets to Spiritual Power pg. 52

I started this trip by driving to the parking lot of the place I'm looking to have the BBQ next month.  I wanted to make sure the back parking lot was empty during this time of the day on Sunday. As expected, it was empty including the front parking lot too.  I still haven't heard back as to whether it will be available or not. I'm sure there are liability issues the owners need to consider.  I drove around that area and saw John Stokes, Jessie and another guy.  John asked for another sandwich, but I declined to give him an extra one.  I did give him some other snacks, but I had a feeling resources were going to be limited Sunday.

On Monday, when I made the special trip to inquire about the parking lot's use I saw Maurice and Elaine.  I told them I'd be back on Sunday to see them and since I was planning on seeing Antonio and Leticia I only had enough sandwiches for one other person. Something was going to have to give here.

I drove over to the 24th and San Pedro area looking for Dave or Willie (my old BBQ buddies).  Well Sunday, Dave was there with a few others who hang-out by the corner there.  Now I hadn't seen Dave in several months, but the last time I saw him was around the 14th and Pico Ave area.  Back then, he was on his bike, but talking with a woman on the sidewalk there.  When I stopped there that day I ended up staying until everything was given out because homeless people kept coming by.  Yesterday, was pretty similar. There were three or four others already there when I pulled up.  Dave gave me a good introduction to the others and it was like I had known them all for a long time.

So yesterday, probably 8 or 9 people got to go through the clothes and maybe 70% of what I had with me was given out. The top photo is (from left to right) Dave, Victoria, Colandra, Hiram and Sandra.  We were about to move Victoria from the chair to her wheelchair.  That took three of us men and a lot of effort. During the time I was there, Peter, Becky and two others on bicycles came by.  It was an enjoyable time. Hiram needed a pair of shoes, but I've never had any 14's with me.  He was a big guy, taller than me.  I told him I gave someone a ride a few years back into this area and he wore size 19's.  We talked about the possibility of doing a BBQ there in the future.  It's doubtful, because there really isn't a place for it.  There is a Winchell's across San Pedro and a small Taco stand directly across this little street.  Neither would be up to hosting a BBQ of free food in their parking lots.  Also, keeping it on a small scale would be difficult too.  I gave out the rest of the sandwiches I had to these folks in the picture and the rest of the snacks and stuff to the people coming by.  When it was time to pray, I asked everyone their name to make sure I got it right.  I had incorrectly remembered Victoria as Elizabeth.  She looked very disappointed and asked me what other name of a queen I knew.  When I said Victoria, her face lit up.  Everyone always wants to be known by their name.  I'll remember hers now.  We all gathered around and held hands while I prayed.  It was special, praying for a group of people I've never met before, yet feeling like a welcome part of their 'family'.

When I left there, I drove over to McArthur Park.  There were lots and lots of people there and I did hear a guy preaching on the corner where I have preached before, but there just wasn't any place to park.  I drove back into the downtown area and went to the Jack in the Box.  My plan was to take a short break, get something to eat (a few tacos) and a soda and then buy some burgers for Maurice and Elaine and stop by to see them before I left.  As I drove up to the Jack in the Box, there was a homeless guy going through the trash can by the door.  He went inside and directly to the bathrooms.  I bought my food and also a soda and a big burger for him.  He didn't come out of the bathroom for twenty minutes (by this time I had finished my food).  I motioned him to come over and gave him the soda and burger.  He was grateful.  He complained that his stomach was acting up, but he appeared to have no trouble eating the food.  He thanked me on the way out.  Finally, I bought some food for my friends, but as I walked out of the Jack in the Box there were two more homeless guys.  One going through that same trash can the first guy had gone through and another guy sitting on some grass directly opposite the door (twenty five feet away).  So here I am with food, two homeless guys and I have to walk on by them with food and drive away.  It was killing me.  As I drove out of the neighborhood I saw two or three more guys who needed help too.  Then when I got to where my friends live they weren't there!  So what do you think I did?  I drove back to the Jack in the Box.  One of the two guys by the door was still there so he got some food.  When I drove out of the neighborhood, I first saw one guy by himself, but then as I got closer there were two other guys.  I only had two burgers left.  I gave them both away along with the last four little bags of chips that I had.  It would have to do.  I gave all I had.  There was no miracle of food being reproduced (maybe next time).  Remember I had that feeling resources were going to be stretched from the very first guy I saw?  ---Until next time (which will be in two weeks)---John

PS.  I also drove by the parking lot I'm hoping to use for the BBQ on the way home.  It was 6:05 pm and there were three cars in the front parking lot and nobody in the back lot.  Keep praying for this door to open up for us.  Thx John

Downtown 7/13/2014

"When we pray as we ought to, our prayer will shake up hell and affect Satan.  For this reason, Satan will rise up to hinder such prayer.  All prayers that come from God touch the powers of darkness."  Watchman Nee--Secrets to Spiritual Power, pg 42

I haven't seen John Stokes in quite a long time.  He had to relocated from his spot under the I-10 at Olympic Blvd and Elwood St a while back.  I was pretty sure where he had moved to and had gone by there and called out to him a couple of times, but there was never any response from inside his make-shift shelter.  Sunday I did the same thing and once again there was no response.  As I pulled away and turned the corner about twenty yards away, there he was on the sidewalk laying on a couple of blankets in the shade of the freeway.  He said it was too hot inside his "place" at that time of the afternoon and was waiting for it to cool off.  We got caught up on his situation and why he had to relocate.  I also asked him about his Social Security problem.  He turned 66 years old in May and since May a year ago has been expecting to receive benefits from them.  But he found out this last time that since he has been receiving disability payments from them for the last twenty years or so, that he is ineligible to receive any 'retirement' benefits.  He was expecting with the increased benefits that he would be able to move back to the Atlanta area where he is from and where he has family.  That was his last hope for getting off the streets for his remaining years, now those hopes are dashed.   While we were talking a woman named Jackie came by and asked for some help and then right after her someone from a couple of years ago, Dave, came by.  Dave used to live by John at the other location a couple of summers ago and then one day he disappeared.  Nobody knew what happened to him.  We found out that he had been picked up by the police, but now he's back and I am glad to see him.

While I had the two of them together I asked if they could think of a place where we could do a BBQ in a couple of weeks.  John came up with the idea of the parking lot across from where they used to live.  The building is not in use on Sunday afternoons and it is under the freeway and therefore in the shade (a crucial consideration during the summer).  He told me to ask  the manager during the week days, so I took a trip down there today to ask him.  He seemed to be OK with it (he knows John quite well), but will have to run it by the corporate people for final approval.  Please pray for us that doors will be opened to do this.  We are looking for an August 17th date.  One last thing about this stop.  It was right at the end of my visit with them that a van with some nuns pulled up and stopped down the street.  Dave and the other homeless folks were hurriedly heading down there to get the free meal they were giving out.  While everyone else was hustling down there, John stayed for a moment longer with me and asked me to pray for him before I left....... After praying with John I turned around and drove down to where the van had stopped.  They were leaving now, but I didn't see any of them praying with anyone.  Just an observation, not a condemnation.  Giving out physical help is a great thing for those in need.  But if you have the Holy Spirit in you, why are you passing up the opportunity to give Him out too?

Now I have written about Angel who is a homeless woman living in an alley off Pico Ave and Olive St.  I hadn't seen her for a couple of weeks and then I saw her last week.  She is from Utah and will turn 58 next month.  She was extremely happy to be able to look through the pile of women's clothes I had brought.  For some 'odd' reason I had put extra women's clothes in the car this trip.  I got to take her picture this week.  See last week's blog as to why I didn't take one then.  Angel has a broken knee cap that never healed

correctly.  You can see the wheel chair in the picture.  She also is always happy to show off her dog Prince  (I think that's why she was so ready for a picture this week).  Her newest addition is a kitten named 'Little Angel".  I was able to pray for her again this week.

There were some others that I was able to help, Hugo around the corner from the alley where my little friend "Rocky" is penned up.

 I was able to pray with Hugo this time and he asked for a blanket.  Antonio and Leticia had to share the last sandwich I had.  Shortly, before helping them, I helped a man sleeping on the corner of a sidewalk down by Cloud Nine Alley.  He wasn't very responsive to me and it kind of bothered me a little, but it's happened before and so I let it go.

 It always reminds me of how people reject God's son Jesus and yet he still cares for us.  About 30 feet down this little side street from this man were two other men repairing a car.  I wasn't sure if they were just replacing a tire for fixing some brakes.  Anyway, they had seen me stopping to help the man on the corner and as I drove towards them they were watching me.  I had the windows down and asked them if they wanted some water.  I had bottles of water in ice in a plastic tub on the back seat.  The man standing on my side of the car asked the other man, "Quiere aqua?"  He said "Si'.  I gave them both some water and received a thumbs up.  I have to say it really was a joy just to give out a cup of cold water in Christ's name. --Until next time.  John

Downtown 6/22/2014

Below is a brief account of my trip.  I just haven't had much time to do a 'regular' blog on it.


The most memorable encounter of this trip was with Angel.  I have gone by her spot in the alley off Pico and Olive for a few weeks now, but she was never there.  This Sunday she was.  She popped out of her make-shift shelter with red stretch pants and a red bra on.  With all her missing teeth and the dirt all over her body it was quite a sight.  I decided to NOT take a picture.  After giving her some food and water and some socks I held her hand and prayed for her.  When I finished she asked me if I would say a special prayer for her friend "Ricky" who she said had died.  Now I'm not in the practice of praying for the dead, but I wanted to honor her request because she was obviously hurting over this lost relationship.  So I prayed for a special blessing on "Ricky" and for the Lord to comfort Angel over this lost relationship.  It was a special moment.  I went on down to McArthur Park, but I didn't see anyone preaching there and so I didn't stop.  I also wanted to try and visit a friend of mine from work who has been off on extended sick leave.  I tracked down his brother-in-law who reminded me where my friend lives (between Hoover and Vermont on 24th St.).  I went and visited this friend whom I haven't seen in 3 or 4 months and didn't really know why he was off.  We got to catch up his situation and I was privileged to pray for him when I left.

I also met Officer Anthony Pineda while stopping to feed Rocky (a pit bull that guards the back entrance to a building off Los Angeles St. and Venice Ave).  Anthony is one of the "Public Security" guys who rides around on a bicycle.  He was very pleasant, in fact, the first thing he said to me was "That guy down there (Raymond from Boston) needs some water."  I told him I'd get to him next.  I always stop, when possible, to feed Rocky.  Mr Pineda said he usually stops to check in on Rocky too.  He said he talked to the owners of the building about him a week ago and they got a little defensive about their care-taking responsibilities to the dog.  So after feeding the dog I talked to Raymond next.  He was in a wheelchair due to a bone disease.  I gave him food, water and some clothes and prayed with him.  Around the corner from Raymond I met Hugo sitting on the sidewalk.  He was hungry too.

Downtown 6/8/2014

"When Jesus saw the crowds, he felt sorry for them.  They were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  He said to his disciples, 'A large crop is in the fields, but there are only a few workers.  Ask the Lord in charge of the harvest to send out workers to bring it in.'"  --Matt. 9:36-8

My take-away from yesterday's trip was how many people are just barely surviving and thankful for just about any assistance they receive.  From the first man I met, Al, from New Orleans, to Robert, off 4th and Alameda, everyone was just eking out an existence.

Just down the street about 70 yards from the fire station on Olive was a man named John right before the corner of Pico.  He was laying down on the sidewalk with his shopping cart next to him.  On his cart was a pair of crutches.  I had already called out to him to ask if he was hungry.  Without even looking up he answered me and started to get up.  If I had known what a struggle it was for him to get over to me I would have gotten out myself (although that's not a quick thing for me anymore either).  Anyway, while he was starting to get up I remembered a guy I met a couple of years ago right about where this man was who had a wheelchair next to him while he was sleeping.  It was an early Sunday morning, about 9 am that day.  That man had only one leg and told me the 'authorities' found him passed out one day and when he woke up he was in the hospital and they had amputated his leg!  What a horror that must have been.  So when I saw this man yesterday and the crutches I had flashbacks of the other guy and was hoping this guy had both legs.  Anyway, when he did get up, he used the shopping cart as a crutch to get over to the car.  I could see getting around to even get a free meal at the missions required a tremendous effort for this man.  I was happy to provide some relief for him.

Just around the corner from this man is a parking lot with an alley going through the middle.  From time to time there are people living in the alley up against some of the buildings on the far end.  Usually, they get run out after awhile when too much 'homeless stuff' starts collecting there.  Anyway, I drove down the alley and gave some food to a man named Carlos.  Just past him on the other side was a make-shift 'home' and someone was looking out the opening (doorway).  I think they had seen me giving food to Carlos so I couldn't very well pass this person up.  It turned out to be a woman in her late fifties (I'm guessing).  She went by the name of Angel.  There was a wheelchair blocking the doorway.  I'm not sure if it was for her or just to block the entry way.  She started telling someone to 'get back in there' and that someone turned out to be her dog, "Princess".  So she was Angel and her dog was Princess!  Angel was very outgoing with a big smile that revealed a lot of missing teeth.  Like the front four were completely gone.  Yet, she was radiant and thankful for the help I gave her.  I'm going to check on her again next week.

I've been looking for John Stokes for the last few weeks.  The place under the freeway where he has been camped for the last five years that I've known him has undergone some renovation.  There is now a chain-link fence where he was staying so he has moved.  I think I've found where he is now, but the last two weeks I have called out to him under the make-shift shelter and he hasn't answered.  So he is either asleep or 'out'.  I wanted to follow up with him on his Social Security payments.  His birthday was last week and he's now 66 years old.  Last year they told him he wasn't old enough to start receiving benefits.  He's hoping it's this year.

I helped a few others near where I think John lives and then headed down to where Robert lives by the mini-truck stop on Alameda before 4th.  He was there and I was able to give him some jeans and a shirt.  I asked him what size shoes he wore and he told me 13's.  I'll have to look around for some that size.  I don't get that size donated very often.  I prayed with Robert and told him I'll look out for stuff he can use.  Yes he got food and water too.

I then drove on over to McArthur Park.  There was a street festival going on with a live band and the street that separates the two sides of the park was blocked.  That meant there was NO PLACE to park.  I drove back down to 7th and Alvarado and could see that the Spanish speaking Jewish man was giving one of the other street preachers a hard time.  I decided it wasn't my day to go to the park.  Until next time. --John

Downtown 5/25/14

"For you have been a refuge to the poor, a refuge to the needy in their distress, a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat."  Isaiah 25:4

It's was a beautiful Southern California afternoon (sunny/70 degrees).  Yet despite the beautiful weather, there are still many people on the street in need.  I only interacted with a handful of folks and the relief on their faces made me glad that I made this trip.  I had prayed beforehand that I would bring joy and peace to people today and it's always an honor when this happens.

The last couple of trips I haven't seen Antonio and Leticia and then the last two Sundays I haven't been able to go either, so it had been well over a month since I've seen them.  Leticia's first comment was, "Long time, no see?"  They both seemed to be doing OK, but Leticia really wanted me to pray for them before I left and she held me tightly while I did.  There have been trips where I've seen her alone and she says Antonio is 'off'.  I've also seen him away from her sleeping on the sidewalk.  I think she gets very worried about him when he leaves for several hours.  I can really only think of one reason why he'd be sleeping during the afternoon. During my time with them another man named Robert walked by and I was able to help him too.

I drove a few blocks away from them on 17th St and found another man named Robert sitting on the sidewalk with just a backpack in the shade.  He told me he was from the Atlanta area and everything he owned he had with him!  I gave him some burgers and water and asked if he needed some socks.  He had a pair on, but he probably had worn them for quite a while.  While getting him the socks, he saw a couple of blankets on the seat and asked if he could have one.  "Of course" I told him.  Seeing his need I asked if he could use some canned food.  He told me "Sure" if it wasn't too bulky and hard to carry.  So I gave him some cans and had a bag for him to carry them in.  He was pretty happy about that.  I had asked him if he was an Atlanta Braves fan since he was from there, but he said he was a Dodger fan.  I told him the pitcher for the Dodgers had thrown a no hitter earlier in the day.  We chatted for a while and I prayed with him asking God to protect and preserve him.  He had told me that he found out his uncle had died the day before.  He also told me I made his day.  It was my favorite encounter of the day.

I stopped one other place off 14th and Paloma.  Youngsta (remember him?) and a tall skinny woman were there.  A couple of other men, Tyrone and Lee, came by.  Everyone got to look through the clothes in the car and got something to eat.  While I was there another car, a Cadillac Escalade, drove by and handed out some food too.  I had initially noticed Youngsta having great difficulty walking.  When I drove up he was sitting on the sidewalk with his shoes off.  When he walked over to the car he limped badly.  His right toes seemed to be swollen.  He lifted up his pant leg and his right leg is really crooked.  He said he had been hit by a tractor trailer rig a long time ago.  It looked like it had been run over at some point and never healed correctly.

Well, all the food had been given out and I started to drive down towards McArthur Park.  As I drove down 7th I noticed the roll-up door with the "I am Legion" words on it not there.  Then I saw that the door had been rolled up and the 'store' behind the door was visible.  Actually, there were a couple of glass walls behind this door, but no stuff and no one was in there that I could see.  Perhaps someone's getting ready to open up an new store there.  I'll keep you posted.  When I got to the park my Spanish speaking friends weren't there.  However, some other groups were there.  In fact, there were three different guys preaching in Spanish.  I prayed and talked with each one of them before leaving.  I actually never did get to preach, but I did get to pray for the people listening.  I was a beautiful day at the park with lots of people.  A perfect day for open air preaching.  --Until next time.  John
 

 

Downtown 5/4/2014

Well, it's been ten days since I made this trip and only now do I have a chance to write about it.  I prayed to bring relief to people that day (it was a hot one).  I met Arthur right about where I had seen Carlos and Kimberly the week before.  Another young man named Alexander was on Essex right off of Washington Blvd and then right around the corner and on the next block west was Solo and 'Youngsta'.  I had last seen them behind the auto parts store on Washington a couple weeks back.  As I drove away from them I saw Grant (another man I know from the place under the freeway on Wall St where I had the last BBQ).  Mixed in here was a drive down the dirt alley between 16th and 15th where I've had some other BBQ's.  When I first drove down there I saw one man in the alley.  As I continued to drive on down, I saw one and then two other men and they were trying to get another man on his feet.  When I finally got to where they were, there were a total of five men there and I didn't know any of them.  One man seemed to have passed out and two or three of the others were attempting to revive him.  I offered them some water which they quickly accepted, pouring one of the bottles over the man's head, saying he had passed out due to the heat.  I ended up giving out about five bottles of water before leaving.  One of the men made it clear he didn't want me around.  He was the one not involved in trying to revive the guy passed out.

When I got to McArthur Park I didn't initially see my other friends there, but then I did find them in a slightly different location.  I stood behind them while they preached.  During this time there was a man about 30 or 40 feet away talking loudly in Spanish.  At first there were a couple of other people he appeared to be talking to, but after awhile he was by himself and continued to talk loudly.  He had a little two-wheeled basket/cart like people take to the store when they have to walk there.  He kept talking on and on and loudly too and from time to time waving his arms.  It was more than a little annoying, although when it was my turn to preach I really didn't pay much attention to him.  After a while a few onlookers gathered because he was kind of making a scene.  I finally asked Rosalla what he was talking about.  She told me that he only believes in the Old Testament.  Then it finally clicked, he was Jewish.  I then noticed the cap he was wearing (his skull cap kind of blended in with his hair color-gray).  I was now a little ticked off and wanted to just go over to him and start reading Isaiah 53 out loud to him, but, I really don't know if he understood English or not.  Now I know that Jews interpret Isaiah 53 completely differently than Christians do, so it may have just provoked more anger and hostility.  When I told Rosalla what I wanted to do she simply said, "We just need to pray for him."  She was so right and I was so proud that that was the attitude of my friends.  I'm sure they had a much harder time ignoring this man because they could understand what he was saying.  In the end, I realized we now had something else in common with Jesus.....we'd been rejected (heckled) by a Jew.  I count it a blessing to be included in the sufferings of Jesus.  --Until next time.  John

Downtown 4/27/2014

"Faith is the only currency accepted in the Kingdom of Heaven." --Reinhard Bonnke

Yesterday, on the way downtown I was praying that I would be bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to people wherever I went.  I just had this idea of bringing a happy face and a precious time of 'relief' to people struggling on the street Sunday.  Although there wasn't that one "memorable" encounter yesterday, it seemed like every encounter was met with the 'relief' of "Oh, am I so glad you came by today."

I had worked all night Saturday night and didn't get to sleep until 9 am on Sunday morning.  I struggled to wake-up and get up at 2:30 in the afternoon.  I didn't make it down there until almost 4 pm.  That's usually a pretty good time to arrive on a Sunday afternoon, however, since I've been going to McArthur Park I usually try to start heading over there about this time to meet up with my Spanish speaking friends who preach the gospel.  I had decided before leaving that the part of the trip to McArthur Park would be optional yesterday and my main focus was going to be with my homeless friends for as long as I needed it to be.  I had packed up quite a few extra clothes and food with some razors, toothbrushes and toothpaste and took off.  Later I would regret that I forgot to take some blankets.....

Most of the encounters yesterday happened in the area around Central and 14th.  The first guy was sitting on the curb with his shoes off.  He had a bike and looked like he was taking a rest from recycling.  His name was Dwight and he was from Chicago.  I'm guessing he was in his sixties.  When I saw his shoes off I asked if he needed some socks ( I had already given him some food and water).  This got me out of the car and gave me the opportunity to pray with him before I left.  Down on the next block from Dwight were a couple of other men sitting on the sidewalk too.  Only one of them responded to my offer of food.  But when I helped another man and woman around the corner from them, one of those men, named Mike, happened to come by and he needed some clothes too.  I had already gotten out of the car to open the back up for Joseph and Misha.  These two both commented about how cold it has been and they only had the clothes on their backs!!!  Luckily, I had come by and was able to get them 'ready' for the cold weather Sunday night.  Although it's expected to heat up this week, that doesn't help people right now.  Joseph only had on some shorts and a t-shirt.  Misha only had on a short dress.  I don't know how they were surviving the nights lately.  It rained pretty hard here a few nights ago.  Joseph said they were from the area around Normandy Blvd.  When I saw what little they had I offered to give them some toothbrushes and toothpaste with the razors.  They gladly accepted those along with some canned food I had with me.  Yes, I got to pray with them too....

So right after leaving them, I drove over to one of the alleys where I've had the BBQ's.  I saw a man way down the alley working over a big pile of stuff in the middle of it.  This alley isn't paved, so I slowly made my way down it.  When I approached where this man was he was still going through the pile, but had started to drag some of the stuff to the side so I could get by.  Then he picked up a baseball bat, and at this point I wasn't quite sure what he was going to do with it, but he used it to knock the remaining stuff over to the side as well.  As I drove passed him I asked if he was hungry.  He didn't understand me at first, but when I said "comida" he understood.  I gave him some food and water and he told me his name was Daniel.  He turned out to be pretty thankful for the help.  You know I didn't notice what the stuff was that he was looking through, whether it was clothing he was looking for or stuff to recycle.  I should have been a little bolder and asked if he needed some socks or shirts.  I guess I was still a little apprehensive about engaging with an unknown man holding a baseball bat.  Around the corner from Daniel and on 16th St I met Derek for the first time.  He had his shopping cart and was bending over and reading a newspaper that he had spread out on top of it.  I was able to help him with just about everything too.  He was amazed that someone would come by giving out stuff to people.  He was 48 years old and although I hadn't seen him before he said he usually comes by this area about that time of the afternoon/evening every Sunday.  I told him "I do too" and after praying with him I said I'd watch for him next week.

The last stop on this part of the trip was to see Carlos behind some buildings by Washington Blvd and Long Beach Ave and I did see him and gave him some water.  I offered to give him the last sandwich I had, but he declined that.  There was a woman down the alley digging through some trash dumped in the alley.  The trash had been heaped up about 4 or 5 feet high in the middle and completely blocked passage through it.  I drove on down to where she was and offered her the last sandwich which she accepted.  Her name was Kimberly.  She appeared to be about 25 yrs old and was only wearing a short, but bright orange dress.  I offered her some clothes in the back but she said she had plenty of clothes (although I don't know where she was keeping them).  What she did ask for was a blanket.  I usually always take a couple with me, but I completely forgot them on this trip, probably because I was half asleep when I loaded up the car.  I told her I'd come back next week at this same time and bring her one.  I hope she's there.

Well it was now a little after 5 pm.  It seemed like a lot happened in only a little more than an hour, but all the sandwiches were gone.  I decided to drive over to McArthur Park and see what was happening.  I stopped and prayed by the "I am Legion" sign, but when I got to the park there wasn't anyplace to park within 3/4 of a mile from 7th and Alvarado.  I haven't been feeling too well lately and just wasn't quite up to walking that far.  So I drove back downtown to Alameda and Hunter St to look for my friends Maurice and Elaine.  I wasn't sure if I'd find them, because they were supposed to take a bus to Texas back in February.  When I drove up Maurice was out in front of their 'place' on the sidewalk.  He pulled out some chairs and I stayed and talked with them for an hour or so.  Elaine's dad had died since I saw them last and Maurice's dad has developed stage three lung cancer.  So 'things' had come up delaying their exit plan to Texas.  We got caught up with all the stuff that had been going on in our lives since I last saw them in February.  I gave them the last of the canned food I had and let them go through the clothes in the car.  We had a nice visit and a group prayer-hug before I left.  It was the perfect end to a good trip. --Until next time.  John