Dottie Lloyd read about the walker one warm summer morning at breakfast. \u201cMiles to Go,\u201d the story in the newspaper was headlined. A man named Ray Goodman was on an epic walk across the United States. He\u2019d already walked 1,600 miles, but had thousands of miles ahead of him.<\/p>\n
That sparked Dottie\u2019s interest. She and her husband, Stan, also loved traveling the country, although they did it riding their big Harleys, not on foot.<\/p>\n
The paper said that Ray would be passing that day along Highway 412, the main drag in Paragould, Dottie\u2019s small northeastern Arkansas town. Maybe I\u2019ll see him,<\/em> thought Dottie. Strangers stuck out in Paragould. She read on.<\/p>\n The story said Ray had worked as a repo man for an attorney in Philadelphia. When people couldn\u2019t pay their debts, it was Ray\u2019s job to repossess their house, car, savings, whatever they had that he could grab.<\/p>\n The job paid well, and Ray owned a house and a boat. But he\u2019d been consumed by guilt for making his living off other people\u2019s misfortune. \u201cI\u2019ll never get over it,\u201d he told the Paragould Daily Press<\/em>.<\/p>\n One day Ray decided he\u2019d had enough. He quit his job, sold his house and boat, donated his money to charity and set off walking. It was no ordinary walk. In a sense, it was a walk of penance. After all, Jesus bids us to help the poor more than anything else in the New Testament.<\/p>\n Ray had no money for food. He couldn\u2019t pay for lodging. Nevertheless, he vowed never to ask anyone for help, only taking what was freely offered to him. In a backpack he carried clothes, toiletries and a stack of brochures for the Sierra Club, America\u2019s largest grassroots environmental organization.<\/p>\n With the blessing of the club\u2019s directors, Ray had dedicated his hike to raising awareness about the environment and recruiting new Sierra Club members.<\/p>\n On his itinerary were numerous national parks. Ray had always loved the outdoors. The walk was his chance to give back. And to rely on other people\u2019s generosity after a lifetime of taking things away.<\/p>\n Wow,<\/em> thought Dottie. Ray Goodman sounded like one inspiring person. She almost hoped she would<\/em> run into him that day.<\/p>\n That afternoon Dottie was in a rush, pulling out of the Walmart parking lot onto Highway 412 on her way home to fix dinner. She saw a lone man, strolling along the sidewalk, with a backpack and a pair of trekking poles. He was wearing a red shirt, blue shorts and a yellow baseball cap.<\/p>\n His tanned face was long and thin, framed by a neatly trimmed beard. He walked briskly and resolutely, as if walking was more natural to him than standing still.<\/p>\n Dottie was so startled she almost didn\u2019t say anything. At the last minute she slowed, rolled down her window and said, \u201cHey, you\u2019re that guy from the paper.\u201d<\/p>\n Ray smiled. \u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n She flashed a thumbs-up. \u201cGood luck with your journey!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThanks!\u201d Ray replied.<\/p>\n Then Dottie pulled out into traffic again and lost sight of Ray in her rearview mirror.<\/p>\n Almost instantly she felt bad. Dumb.<\/em> She remembered how Ray had forbidden himself to ask for help. Why hadn\u2019t she offered to buy him some food? Let him camp in the backyard? Something, anything.<\/em> How could she have forgotten?<\/p>\n She did a U-turn and drove back along the highway. By then Ray was gone. She checked a few side streets, then made her way to an RV campground where the newspaper said Ray was staying. No sign of him.<\/p>\n Dottie drove home feeling terrible. She hadn\u2019t just let Ray down. She\u2019d let God down. We\u2019re supposed to welcome strangers and care for others!<\/em> Dottie thought, remonstrating with herself.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n She\u2019d read that article about Ray and then run into him\u2014if that wasn\u2019t a call from the Lord, she didn\u2019t know what was. But Dottie hadn\u2019t even offered Ray something from her grocery bags. She\u2019d been too startled, too much in a rush to get home. Still, it wasn\u2019t like her to be so thoughtless.<\/p>\n The next few days she looked for Ray but never saw him. She showed the newspaper story to Stan. For a while she and her husband followed Ray\u2019s occasional updates to his Facebook page. But life went on and Dottie\u2019s remorse faded.<\/p>\n Three months later, Dottie and Stan set out on a 10-day, 3,000-mile motorcycle tour. With another couple, they planned to ride up to the Dakotas, then down through Wyoming and Colorado. It was September, the perfect time of year for a road trip.<\/p>\n At the halfway point of their odyssey, the two couples pulled up to the Mount Rushmore visitors\u2019 center. They parked their bikes and went inside. That\u2019s when Dottie saw him. A familiar figure.<\/p>\n His back was to her but Dottie recognized the same red shirt, blue shorts, backpack and yellow baseball cap. Trekking poles at the ready. Ray Goodman.<\/p>\n Dottie marched right up to him and said, \u201cHey, you\u2019re the guy walking across the United States!\u201d<\/p>\n Ray looked a little startled. \u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d he said. \u201cHow did you know?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve seen you before, in Paragould, Arkansas,\u201d said Dottie. \u201cYou should have lunch with my friends and me. On us. I won\u2019t let you tell me no.\u201d<\/p>\n Ray smiled, a flicker of relief in his eyes. He looked much thinner than he had been when she last saw him.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re sure it\u2019s all right?\u201d he asked. \u201cI mean, I haven\u2019t showered in days\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n Dottie cut him off with a laugh. \u201cRay, we\u2019re bikers, for crying out loud!\u201d she said, laughing. \u201cWe don\u2019t mind.\u201d<\/p>\n Pretty soon, Dottie, Stan, their friends and Ray were seated in a cafeteria with big plate-glass windows looking out toward the famous mountain. The great presidents seemed to look down in approval.<\/p>\n Everyone had pot roast, glazed carrots, roasted potatoes, crusty rolls, and cake for dessert. \u201cI\u2019m glad we ran into you,\u201d said Dottie. \u201cI still feel terrible I didn\u2019t offer you anything in Paragould.\u201d<\/p>\n Ray cocked his head. \u201cDon\u2019t feel bad,\u201d he said. \u201cI had tons of help in Paragould. What an incredibly generous town!\u201d<\/p>\n They all talked about their travels and about the places Ray was headed next. Ray finished the last bites of his dessert, and Dottie offered him her leftovers. He ate them without hesitation. Finally, it was time to go.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t thank you enough for this meal,\u201d Ray said. \u201cOut here in the Dakotas, I\u2019ve had long stretches where I don\u2019t see a soul. This is the best meal I\u2019ve had in days.\u201d Dottie got the feeling it was the only real meal he\u2019d had in days.<\/p>\n Dottie and the others watched him go. It was only as Ray\u2019s lean, upright form faded from sight that Dottie realized what had just happened. She knew she\u2019d been called to help, but there was a reason she\u2019d let Ray pass by in Paragould.<\/p>\n He didn\u2019t need her help then. He needed her help later, at the foot of Mount Rushmore, many miles further up the road than Dottie could have seen.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n