My last memory of being at a train station wasn't one I would find joy in recalling. Despite being around 8 or 9 years of age the trauma is as vivid today as it was then. On one occasion there was a shooting and another a conversation I had with a drunk man who was sitting opposite me. This was on a New York train around 1993. Today Amanda would have her first train ride. We would be taking the train from Arlington to the US Capitol.
Day 7 of the 12minrvconvos podcast journey started with us parking at the home of Brian Nelson Palmer then walking to the nearest subway entrance then getting our metrocard from metal robotic machines that to say the least were very intimidating if not for our hero, Ryan.
Amanda is a pretty cool cookie. She followed Ryan's lead being sure to have her attenna up being .
Next up Custom Home Exteriors founded by Stephen Scoggins. Stephen made an appearance on my podcast as episode #69. Stephen is someone I admire tremendously. I first met him briefly at Entreleadership 2013, then after our #12minconvo I attended his phenomenal event "TransformU Live" in North Carolina in 2017.
Stephen is a supporter and an encourager. When I started my campaign to raise funds for this trip he stepped in with a donation of
Dori Staehle, Valerie Stover, Divya Parekh and Sheyenne Kreamer. Dori was episode 768. I first interviewed her on November 21st 2016 then met her when I visited North Carolina in 2017. Dori's story can be listened to below.
Valerie Stover, I met at TransformU Live but had never interviewed her before. Luckily, we caught her on her final day working at CHE. She graciously accepted my offer to have a #12minconvo.
Divya Parekh, visited and showed the power of synchronicity with a gift of Stover chocolates after I interviewed Valerie Stover.
Then Sheyenne Kreamer visited. Sheyenne was episode #1198 on the #12minconvos podcast. I first spoke to her on the 23rd of September 2017 and it was just as fun as meeting her virtually as it was in real.
Having amazing conversations but then not having a planned place to sleep. We went to Arby's to come up with a plan. Why Arby's? Ryan had a coupon.
We had dinner and Ryan came up with the next planned stop. We would go to his home in Virginia. This was a great idea. There is so much we are thankful to Ryan for, he helped us tremendously.
At his home we had a warm place to spend the night. This would be something Amanda and I would cherish in the near future.
All good things come to an end. Our time spent with Crystal and her family was a milestone marker. Crystal has literally been one of the persons present in the waiting room when Engel gave birth to the idea of the 12minrvconvos quest. Her encouragement and support has been steadfast. After having a night's rest, goodbyes were exchanged with Crystal and her family. We were blessed with food, both for our body and soul.
I remember vividly that there wasn't sufficient time to have tea. Crystal poured mine into a travel cup with the words scribed on it, 'With Brave Wings She Flies'. Every morning thenceforth I was greeted by those words and they spoke to me. Words of love, words of encouragement, words of determination. A simple kindness brought profound comfort.
Highlight: I had my first Cracker Barrel breakfast, on this trip, in North Carolina.
For North Carolina I was excited, mainly because Engel had been there before and he spoke so highly of his experience. Well, it did not fail to deliver. Thanks to Stephen Scoggins we were provided with a space to meet and record Engel's guests. I must say each guest brought their own uniqueness to share with us, which we appreciated.
After a day of amazing conversation recordings, we had to figure out where we were going to stay for that night. Uncertainty hovered over us a bit. While having dinner Ryan suggested we go to his parents home in Virginia. With the address entered into the GPS we were off and away. The kindness extended to us by Ryan's parents cannot go unmentioned. They cared for us as if we were their children also. One more peaceful night's sleep, not that I was counting then, but the memory of it made the not so good times a bit more bearable.
On our drive to Virginia I streamed live on Facebook as we were driving by naval bases as Ryan pointed out. One of my cousins was looking on and messsaged that she was living nearby. We exchanged numbers on Facebook messenger and planned to meet the next Day.
When we arrived at Ryan's home his parents were most welcoming. His parents and Samson. I have a picture below on the camera roll with Samson. Check out the size on that guy.
If you missed out on Day 3 and you are curious to catch up click HERE.
Related Posts
Nina Söderquist- Nina Söderquist: The rock star Nina Söderquist has been called London’s Music Age and was praised by the world press for her success in London’s West End with the musical SPAMALOT. Nina has toured with Björn Skifs (Blue Swede, “Hooked on a Feeling”) and BADROCK, rocking arenas around the world, with several ROCK
Read MoreGreg Clunis- Greg Clunis: My passion in life is to build solutions to problems. I love the process of taking an idea and organizing resources around it in a way that allows for something new, unique, and interesting to be created. This passion presents itself in my various interests and experiences such as art, media
Read MoreDeacon Hayes- Deacon Hayes is the Founder of WellKeptWallet.com which reaches over 1,000,000 people per month. He has been a contributor for the US News & World Report, Investopedia, Clark Howard and more. He is also the author of the book, You Can Retire Early! Everything You Need to Achieve Financial Independence When You Want It. Time Stamped Show Notes: Snippet of Deacon‘s previous episode How are
Read MoreAlex Barker- Alex Barker is the chief life alchemist at 66DayExperiment.com. He experiments on his life and business, like reading a book a day, or making healthy habits stick. By day a pharmacist, by night a hero to his 2 daughters and wife. His mission is to help men and women find a disciplined approach to
Read MoreDave Bullis- Over the last three years Dave has continued to work in both IT and the film industry. In 2014 when Dave was passed over for a promotion at work he started his podcast, “The Dave Bullis Podcast” as a way to creative something positive that would also allow him to network. Listen another
Read MoreSusan Heaton Wright- Susan Heaton Wright is a former professional opera singer, who uses her experience of the voice and performing, to empower individuals and teams to be effective communicators, using their voices and physical presence. Susan works with clients to ensure they are using their voices and body language to create a presence and
Read MoreDennis Washington is an online communications expert, award-winning journalist, internet broadcaster, meteorologist… /Ep 4 Dennis Washington is an online communications expert, award-winning journalist, internet broadcaster, meteorologist, videographer/photographer and digital content manager with more than 20 years of experience working in broadcast media. he started his own business three years ago to help entrepreneurs and businesses
Read MoreDr. Laci Robbins My experience rooted in the field of education and non-profit management. Over the course of nearly 15 years I have been blessed to study at my dear Fisk University, Harvard, and even NASA! And most recently, I have served the local Milwaukee, WI community and abroad through creative visual practice, as well
Read MoreTom Rubens- In the 40 years since he graduated from the University of Illinois, Tom Rubens has bought, sold, and managed businesses in a variety of different fields. He founded a commodity trading company, a real estate brokerage, and assembled investment groups to buy minor league baseball and basketball franchises. After selling his last business,
Read MoreAnna Vocino I make my living as an actor. I like hiking, books, vodka, and going to Italy, and I love my husband, daughter, and dog. If you laugh at my jokes, we’ll probably be fast friends. If you make me laugh, we’ll probably be best friends. Sometimes I’m on TV, but mostly I’m behind
Read MoreLars Klint- Lars Klint is an author, trainer, Microsoft MVP, community leader, authority on all things Windows Platform, and part time crocodile wrangler. He is heavily involved in the space of HoloLens and mixed reality, as well as a published Pluralsight author, freelance solution architect, and writer for numerous publications. He has been a part
Read MoreBecky DeAcetis- Becky De Acetis is on a mission to help entrepreneurs turn their passion into a growing business. Becky teaches business owners the tools on how to simplify growing their business and inspires them to chase after what lights them up.A mix of encouragement, tech, and accountability, Becky has been known to transform a
Read More