Today we gather at Southside Presbyterian Church, packing trailers, and getting things ready to head off to Sásabe, Mexico where we will break bread and begin our 75 mile trek to Tucson on the Migrant Trail Walk. We walk to remember those who have died trying to seek freedom from poverty, oppression, and a myriad of other things. They come out of hope. Yet, it has been said, for every human remains recovered in the desert, there are as many as 10 never found. Since 2000 more than 2,500 human remains have been recovered in the southern deserts of Arizona alone.
I can’t help but ask, based on my previous post, if I walk out of selflessness or out of self interest to say, “I did this.” I try to enter this experience with an open heart and mind, praying for the health and wellbeing of all participating and those who are also walking the desert but whom we cannot see and who do not have the safety of a caravan of support vehicles (complete with an ample supply of water and “toilet tents”).
An interesting group of people gather, from an array of political, theological, and cultural perspectives. Prayers welcome.