REVELATION-final1

DAY 34(Thursday, 22 May 2014)THE LOVE OF FAMILYIt is DAY 34 of my hunger strike and still no word from Pope Francis or the Vatican, who havechosen to hide behind the 5 th amendment in order to avoid self-incrimination. But for the HolySee to remain silent is more suspicious than any apologetic statement it might have made.My health is excellent and the sensation of hunger is still under control. At times, cravingsdistract me from writing and interfere with my ability to focus, but I can still function normally.I anticipate the cravings to get worse especially now that seasonal fruit like peaches, cherries andwatermelons are on wonderful display on the neighborhood vegetable stands and I have to walkby every day and abstain.The scales show that I have lost 400 grams in the past two days and that means I now weigh 76Kg or 167 pounds and 9 ounces. The total weight loss to date is 16.2 Kg or 35 pounds and 11ounces. My body has therefore shrunk by 17.5% and has done so by losing an average of 476grams or 16.8 ounces a day.Let me now return to the narrative of my escape from Canada.I have just set foot on the American side of the Saint Croix River and am trying to keep my bootsdry while pulling the inflatable bed ashore and letting the air out so I can fold it and hide it underthe snow. When that is done and my backpack is safely on my shoulders, I start walking up thehill and into the backyards of the good people of Calais, Maine.The snow is deep and crisp and it crunches rather loudly every time I take a step, which makesme cringe with apprehension that the inhabitants of the two houses I am just walking betweenwill open their windows and start screaming at me or, worse, alert the border guards that anillegal has entered the country from the north. But none of this happens and in a few more stepsI am on the cleared sidewalk of a quiet residential street where I straiten my back and keepwalking with feigned confidence and my head held high, just as though I were on my usual dailyroutine.The state of Maine is an hour behind the Province of New Brunswick so although I started myclandestine crossing at 5 AM in Canada, I made it into the US at 4:30 AM, which means Iactually gained half an hour. This detail is important and I considered it carefully when Idecided upon the best time to make my escape because at 4AM people are in a deeper sleep thanat 5AM. I could have conceivably floated across even earlier in the morning, but then I wouldhave had to wait for McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts to open and I would have been suspiciouslywondering the streets at that ungodly hour and drawn unwanted attention from the police.158