Salt of the Earth

The Rolling Stones said it well…

Say a prayer for the common foot soldier
Spare a thought for his back breaking work
Say a prayer for his wife and his children
Who burn the fires and who still till the earth

I’m guessing that most of us give little thought to everyone around us unless we faced with meeting and greeting others.

If there’s one thing this trip has taught me is that we are all connected with great and interesting people. Maybe its my daily riding outfit or just being in places where others are strangers too. Its renewed my faith in our brother and sisterhood. Here’s just a bunch since I started:

Singers at the bar…

Rockabilly band at Sunset Pier in Key West

Singer at Hogfish Bar in Key West

Fishing as a way of life… The bridge pier is so high and the fish so big, most can’t be brought up. But its all about fishing.

Family fishing is a way of life. Fish here are bigger. No wonder that.

Ferry as a lifestyle. Katherine is retired but crosses the St James River to help care for invalid women for her church. Her husband retired from military as so many around here do.

Katherine filled me in on the details of the ferry and the area.

Sandra and Ed vacation here in Florida to visit kids who have moved to the area. They are from Vermont.

John and Joan rolled into Charleston in their deluxe RV. They retired to Tucson but prefer roaming the country. Warm areas in the winter, cool areas in the summer. Their original home base was Connecticut.

Where do you turn on a Sunday morning for some energy and good vibes? Your local roadside produce stand. This guy gave me a Red Navel orange and would not take any money for it. Pay it forward…

Red Navels for sale or to give away. Kindness everywhere.

Here’s Carl (aka “Port Arthur”) a former trombonist who looks like he now admintsters wisdom to locals and travelers near Charleston. Everyone seems to know Carl.

Carl (“Port Arthur”) the resident sage of these parts with a friend.

Then there were some “trail angels” right before Charleston where the road made me weary. Min and Carl pointed out a real bike path that let me ride 6 miles to town and saved my ass.

Min and Carl who helped guide me to safe passage along the W. Ashley Greenway.

All hail the good people out there.

Author: paulkiczek

Avid cyclist and walker. Interested in writing about life's observations, retirement, pushing yourself in your later years and living a healthy lifestyle. View all posts by paulkiczek

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