Last weekend, a few of us spontaneously met an art gallery owner whose wife had interviewed Zilong last year about his previous cross-country and current cross-continent pilgrimages. :) Here's the 10-minute conversation:



And a few excerpts from it include:

Question: What did you learn? What started to come to you as you were bike riding around everyday? Did you get some moments of 'enlightenment' or sudden realizations?

Zilong: One biggest realization is how good people are. Throughout the entire 3,000+ miles and two-and-a-half months, I never met one bad person. Never a harsh word. Every single night, one family or another opened up their home to let me camp in their backyard. And every single night, I've been able to have a shower inside of a stranger's home.

Question: Wow -- and they trusted you? Most people opened up their homes to you?

Zilong: Yeah, one in five. The average "success rate" is one in five. Which gives me great hope, because it's a lot to ask. And they often invite me to have dinner and breakfast with them. We chat and share about life, pray together before a meal. It's definitely some of the richest parts of the journey.

[...]

Question: Are you asking for any specific support at this time?

Zilong: I would ask for prayers of peace, inside and out, and for the introspection in seeing how we are aligned with our values. And in trying our best to be the change we want to see in the world, it doesn't matter the magnitude or the act itself, but in each micro-act, micro-moment -- each thought that arises -- it reprograms our heart and being.