DAY 136 - KARLOBAG TO SV JURAJ: 32.9 MILES (65,800 STEPS)

5 September, 2011

32.9 miles (Total: 1354.92 miles) 65,800 steps (Total: 2,642, 041 steps)

At 3.00AM I was woken by a mosquito dive bombing my ear drum and I couldn’t get back to sleep, so I decided to set off again to put a serious dint into the baron stretch of coastline and cliffs between Karlobag and Senj.  Again I was not feeling in good health, but I didn’t have my rucksack which was a massive help. In conversation over dinner the night before we had been talking about the beautiful scenery and cliffs, but I felt utterly unmoved by the beauty—to me they were a Leviathan to be slain.

The romance of walking had disappeared somewhere in the southern suburbs of Athens and this was now a pure slog. I enjoy the company of Rob and Di so much it was a real wrench to leave them and not spend the entire week in their company—although as Rob said “If that is what you wanted then we wouldn’t have come out. We only came because you said you were going to be walking all day.” Point taken.

Without doubt what makes Rob and Di Parsons so utterly special and inspiring, is that for all their achievements their greatest gift is humour. The humour keeps them real. Socrates had the same idea—he thought that it was vital for people to be allowed to mock their leaders in theatres as an essential part of democracy because through the humour it kept the leaders feet in the city rather then allowing them to float up to the temples of the gods on the hot air of sycophancy and ego.

Together Rob an Di Parsons have helped millions of families around the world cope with marriage, kids, debt, drugs and disillusionment with Faith; this they have done through Care for the Family and through a dozen bestselling books, seminars and DVDs. Without any hesitation I would say that they have influenced more people for good than any other person or persons I have ever had the privilege of meeting.

They have a simple formula:

First, they expose their own mistakes with incredible honest.  This puts the audience or reader at their ease, as they think they might be about to get a lecture from some pompous leader who tells how they never let their kids watch tv after 5:50pm in the evening; spend time reading together as a family and playing board games; travel everywhere on bikes with the kids looking forward to putting on their helmets; and always have a supply of sliced apple and raisins in a Tupperware box with still water for when the kids are peckish whilst revising for their exams.  This tells you that are not the worst parent in the world, you are just normal.

Second, they use humour to get them to look at their problems in perspective.

Third, though vulnerability and humour they share some practical tips for trying to ‘get your kids through’ and get yourself through too.

It is an extraordinary mix and the impact in terms of releasing people from guilt, telling them they are not the worst parents in world and that in fact they are doing a great job, and giving them some practical tips as to how to get through.

I have attended dozens of their seminars over the years and they have the same effect on audiences time after time.  They arrive as if they were about to be told by the Inland Revenue that there had been a mistake and they owed £5000 which must be paid before they leave and they then leave as if they have found out that the mistake was actually that they have been overcharged £5000 and they can pick up the cash plus backdated interest at the door.

We relaxed in the evening in a chalet at a beach camp they found by having a competition to tell the best ever Tommy Cooper joke. Rob wins with:

Patient: “Doctor when I press here (prodding his shoulder) it hurts, when I press here (prodding this hip) it hurts and when I press here (prodding his knee) it hurts.

Doctor: “I think you have a broken finger.”

Runners up: ‘I went to the doctors. He said, “I’d like you to lie on the couch.” I said, “What for?” he said, “I’d like to sweep the floor.”;

A policeman stopped me the other night, he taps on the window of my car and says “Would you please blow into this bag, Sir?” I said, “What for officer?” He said, “My chips are too hot.”

“Two aerials meet on a roof – fall in love – get married. The ceremony was rubbish but the reception was brilliant.”

If you don’t find that funny then clearly you haven’t had enough wine yet…..