At the corner of Bellaire Boulevard and Boone Road, on a warm day in west Houston, more than a dozen Buddhist monks ate their lunch. They were in the midst of a journey — on foot — from Texas to Washington, D.C.
The monks plan to walk more than 2,000 miles over the course of 110 days through 10 states for what is called their “Walk for Peace.” They began journeying from Fort Worth on Oct. 26 and were resting in Houston on Friday before continuing the journey.
"Our Walk for Peace is to raise awareness of peace, love, kindness, and compassion to everybody, both that everyone will be in unity and live with harmony, and hope that our country will heal," said Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, the monk leading the journey.
Since October, the monks have visited Burleson, Grandview and other Texas cities. In Austin, they walked into the Texas State Capitol and convened in the rotunda.
On Friday, their journey brought them to the Hong Kong City Mall, where the monks were met with a welcome ceremony. Afterward, their supporters prepared a buffet-style meal for them in the parking lot.
"I believe that in this time, where more than half of the world is in chaos, fear or fight, we need to be intentional to do events and bring people together," said state Rep. Suleman Lalani, D-Sugar Land, who was standing alongside the monks. "Together in peace, and together in unity, and this is the perfect example."
Their journey is well-documented on social media. The Walk for Peace has shared daily updates from the monks about their journeys, ways to support them, with photos showing them walking along highways and fields.
They're accompanied by a dog, Aloka, who is walking alongside them. At the Hong Kong City Mall, Aloka was met with fans who took photos with the dog.
From Houston, the monks will travel through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia as they make their way into Washington. They’re stopping in major cities along the way to meet with supporters and, like in Houston, curious onlookers.
"All the monks are tired and blistered and everything," Bhikkhu Pannakara said, "but we are trying our best to walk, to finish this journey, because we took on this journey already. And with all of these, I think it will be worth it for our country to be healed, and for all the people along the path that we are working that they find peace for themselves."
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