Moments #677-678. Road trip day 4. Fri, Jul 28, 2006.

07/28/2006. Day 4 of trip.

I checked out of the motel and headed through the Appalachian mountains. I wasn't feeling too well from something I caught earlier in the trip. It would still be several hours of driving before I had to decide whether to take the route that would take me through Louisville, stay the night, and stop at a church singles conference in that area on Saturday, or whether to take a slight shorter route home and arrive home Friday night.

At my first stop I missed an opportunity. I should have said something to an English-only speaking cashier. I just had a small feeling about it. I chickened out, and if it was a spritual prompting, I disobeyed it.

There was another exit later on that I think I was supposed to take, but didn't, and kept on driving.

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07/28/2006. Day 4. Moment #677. Portuguese.

I forgot to write in my notes why I stopped at this exit in Northern Tennessee. I first stopped at one or two places on the cross-road on one side of the Interstate,. I was probably going to get back on the Interstate, but then I felt strongly tugged to the other side of the Interstate, so I stayed on the cross-road as it passed under the highway. There were only two gas stations on that side, so it had to be one of them. I bought something at the first, but nothing happened there.

At the second gas station, I bought something, and the cashier looked like he was from India. He spoke Hindi, Portuguese and English, but did not read Hindi. He was from the part of India that was colonized by Portugal, so that is why he spoke Portuguese. I offered and he agreed to receive Portuguese and English Books of Mormon, so I retrieved them from the car. I forget the exact conversation, but I got the impression from what he said that he was Christian, not Hindu or Muslim.

For some reason I asked if there were any Korean restaurants in the area. He said the one down the road used to be Korean but it was Mexican now. It was about supper time, so I decided to eat there.

I drove down to the Mexican restaurant, parked, and started to get a Spanish Bible and Book of Mormon from the car. As I perused my box of Bibles, I found a Portuguese Bible that I had forgotten about. I had a very strong feeling to take it back to the man at the gas station, and not eat at that restaurant.

So I got back in the car, drove back to the previous gas station, and entered. There was no one in line. The cashier was away from the cash register, and he was reading the Portuguese Book of Mormon! I approached the cash register, he came forward. I held out the Portuguese Bible, asked if he needed one, and said it was free. His eyes got wide, and he very gratefully accepted it.

I didn't want to take up any more of his time, as there were other customers in the store. But his attitude made me think that my gift was an answer to his prayers. If we had continued to talk, I wouldn't have been surprised if he had said that. I got the idea that his unspoken thoughts were "How did he know I needed Portuguese scriptures?"

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07/28/2006. Day 4. Moment #678. Traditional Chinese.

I stopped at an exit somewhere in Kentucky. I went to one or two gas stations, and then saw a Chinese restaurant. The cashier at one gas station said she heard it was good, so I decided to eat supper there.

At some point during the meal I offered the waitress a Chinese and English pair of the Book of Mormon, but she declined.

After paying at the cash register up front, I offered them to the cashier/hostess and she accepted them. She was not reluctant to accept them, but had an "okay, whatever" attitude.

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I finally decided to take the shorter route home and skip the church singles conference, and arrived home late at night.