102 ... Gabriel MorrisWe folded up the note and, along with some sagebrush that we
had previously picked and dried, lit it on fire in one of my metal
camping bowls. We sat in silence, holding hands in a small circle
with our eyes closed as the paper and sage burned to ashes. When
it had burned away completely, we emptied it into the wind with a
simple “Amen.”
“Well, that should do it,” said Forest. “Now—we wait.”
Half an hour later, our prayer was answered. A Subaru station
wagon came flying down the road towards us. We all stuck out our
thumbs enthusiastically. It passed us at first—then slowed down,
turned around and came back. A young man got out.
“Hey, you guys! I almost didn’t stop because my car is already
pretty packed with my stuff. But we’ll see what we can do.”
His name was Drew, and he was a college student from U.C. Santa
Barbara, heading back to his home in Denver for the summer. After
twenty minutes of rearranging—tying much of his stuff onto the top
of the car—he made just enough room for the three of us and our
backpacks. We all climbed in, grateful to be moving and to feel that
Great Spirit was indeed listening and looking out for us.
We stayed with Drew for the next two-and-a-half days, through
the beautiful, lonely deserts of eastern Nevada, Utah, and western
Colorado. By the time he dropped us off in the Rocky Mountains a
thousand miles later, we were like old friends. We all hugged good-
bye and wished each other well.
We were now practically within spitting distance of the Rainbow
Gathering in New Mexico. And with some luck, we actually man-
aged to make it there that evening, after getting a ride south to Du-
rango, and then another from a farmer in a big pickup truck, who was
headed for Taos. We all piled into the back. Bethany and I cuddled up
together against the cab to keep out of the wind, and eventually fell
asleep for much of the ride.
When, hours later, we came to the turn-off to the gathering a few
miles before Taos—up a dirt Forest Service road marked with rain-
bow-colored ribbon—the farmer decided to give us a ride all the way