Stepping out for the street children of Colombia...
'Stepping out' big time...
John Clark had a bright idea. A sponsored stroll, to help the street children in Colombia... the following is a letter he composed for supporters, and we thought it would be a good idea to reproduce it here.
Date 16/5/2004
Dear Supporter,
If you are reading this letter, I am currently nursing blisters and aching bones in Devon, but happy to report to you that I have just completed half of the solo charity walk I set out upon 5 weeks ago.
On the 14th April I left my home village of Little Walsingham in Norfolk with the aim of walking - pilgrim style - 800 miles to Santiago de Compostela in North West Spain.
Never having undertaken such a physical and mental challenge, and not a little uncertain as to whether this 57 year old bag of bones could accomplish the task, I decided not to trumpet my ambitions or tweak anyone's charitable instincts until I had travelled sufficient of the journey to give me the confidence to tackle the rest of it. This would, I judged, spare my blushes if I fell into a ditch and broke my leg after only 50 miles. The choice of half-way staging-post for the journey was inspired by the restorative home cooking of my sister who lives in Dawlish, and it is in this Devonian coastal town that I am now taking a short rest before continuing the walk to Plymouth to catch the ferry for Santander in Northern Spain, where the remaining 400 mile pilgrim route to Santiago awaits me.
The charity for which I am attempting this challenge is one which was founded in Walsingham by Father Peter Walters in 1994. The Let The Children Live! Foundation courageously helps the unwanted street children of that much troubled country, Colombia, repair their damaged lives. These are the so-called 'disposable" ones who often live in appalling circumstances of violence and squalor -sometimes victims of drug and substance abuse at an early age - in a society struggling to combat some of the most intractable political and social problems in the world today.
Why this particular walk? Many of you may know that Walsingham has been the focal point for English pilgrimage since the year 1061, and of course the pilgrimage routes through northern Spain to Santiago have been the most important in Europe, after Rome. Linking the two has never, as far as I am aware, been done before. Although I do not approach the pilgrimage from a particular religious standpoint, I am interested in the impulse to go on a pilgrimage and I think most of us can identify with the deeper meanings that a long journey might hold for us.
The 440 mile UK leg I have just completed linked some of Britain's ancient paths and transhumance routes. They go under the umbrella title of 'The Greater Ridgeway' and join such tracks as the Peddars Way, lcknield Way, The Ridgeway and Wessex Way. The next part of the journey will be even more challenging. After the walk to Plymouth, Brittany Ferries are kindly adding their sponsorship to the cause and shipping me to Santander. From there I shall follow the Camino Norte westward along the coast, eventually joining the Camino Frances for the final stretch into Santiago. I hope to arrive in Santiago about the first week in July. This year will be celebrated as a special XACOBEO year as the feast of St. James falls on a Sunday. On arrival I shall get my Pilgrim Passport stamped in the cathedral before heading for the nearest bar and physiotherapist.
I do hope you can find it within you to support the charity. In all charitable efforts it seems invidious to support one charity in preference to another and often we wonder how our small efforts can make a difference in the face of seemingly insurmountable problems. But they very much do make a difference and a modest infusion of funds into the work being done for the 'disposable ones' can have a big impact on the future course of many lives. I am reminded of the words of Edmund Burke: "no man makes a greater mistake than he who does nothing because he himself can do so little"
Thank you for having given valuable time to reading this letter. I hope you are well and that you are finding your own life's pilgrimage rewarding,
Yours sincerely,
John A. Clark
Before John left Walsingham, a few photographs were taken to start him on his way... Fr. Michael Rear blesses John's intended epic trek!
Support for John would of course be most welcome. You can sponsor him with a donation through this site, or alternatively write to his address:
Hazel cottage
Station Road
Little Walsingham
Norfolk
England
NR22 6DG
Please support John's magnificent efforts on behalf of Colombia's street children!
Is there a conscience?
Molly McBreen has written the following poem. It explains why people like John Clark (see above), do what they do...
Is there a conscience?
Living in fear, surviving on hope,
The British think 'How do they cope?'
But in Colombia they're seen as wild,
If there is conscience, please save this street child.
Catch many diseases, most die when they're young,
Dealing with drugs,
Their heads always hung.
Some may feel frightened, unwanted, deprived
But some see it as a stage in most people's lives.
Children making their own ends meet,
Working on corners, living in streets,
There are so many they're unevenly piled,
If there is conscience, please save this street child.
We take for granted our bread and butter,
While they search for crumbs and scraps in the gutter.
Our houses and beds seem heaven sent,
When their duvet's the stars
And their pillows cement.
In the sewers they silently creep,
As strangers capture them when they're asleep.
Killed in a list as if each one is filed,
If there is conscience, please save this street child.
They should feel the way that every child should,
And when they were home with their families they could,
But because of disagreement or maybe a change,
Their whole lives have been rearranged.
We worry about nuclear war and old deeds,
While using things we don't really need.
Why should these children feel such strife?
If there is conscience then please, help street life!!!
Molly McBreen
Penarth
