Jul 2007

THE EARLY DAYS

I was born in Dublin in 1965, a fairly rough working class area in the city centre. My parents bought a house with a garden, thus I was going to be kept off the streets to have a more sheltered childhood and let my imaginations run away with myself in that garden. 1965 was the start of Star Trek, a programme based on what we may see in the future. Sure enough half of the things I saw in the programme became real later in the 80's like, sliding doors, mobiles etc. I guess that stayed in my mind when I was a baby. My unconscious mind remembered the importance of what people think. It came to be the most important part of my life and my own beliefs.

Starting in school it didn't take long that the teachers noticed how good I was at drawing. I look at my own drawings today and I see that I always saw things in a 3 dimensional way, which came out to be very important in my life. If you look in a 2 dimensional way, to me that means I am limited in what I can see or think. On a ship one I looked down at the water, as we only see the surface. But I know that there are millions of life and action going on down there under the surface, and that's what I wanted to draw.

Year by year, I started to become a good student, excellent at maths art and English, but struggling with Irish as my Christian brother teacher refuses to speak English. It made the language more complicated to follow, and with the same teacher, I failed in Latin also as he spoke through Irish as well! I loved school but I didn't know how much unfairness and brain washing was going on in this Christian Brother School in the 70's and 80's. Looking back it seemed being educated was secondary, as long you speak Irish and dislike English people and Protestants. Being that young, I believed this, and it took me 19 years to get away from being an ignorant, racist teenager, and sadly that is what my school produced.

Art was my best subject and my art teacher a Sister, saw my talents early. We had something in common as we both suffer from migraine headaches. Mine started at about 8 years old, and she had similar experiences. I used to get 2 or 3 migraines a year, but more coming close to exam time. She always asked my about it, but I never thought anything about it, its just a headache.

In 1981 I heard about the man Terry Fox, who tried to run across Canada raising funds for a cure for Cancer. He lost his right leg through this disease, and sadly over half way, the cancer came back and he died soon after. The impact he made was astonishing, asking one dollar from each Canadian and after his death over 26 million was raised, more than 1 dollar per head. I was inspired but it was way over my head. I didn't even know where Canada was.

My world was my garden, and my imagination was free. At 17 I was picked for a possible scholarship in Art, in Trinity College, being one of just 40 people who got an A in Art and History. The 4 scholarships were up for grabs, but I did not get it, and despite my disappointment It came to be a blessing in another year.

I was a clerk in a shipping company, B&I and I got the job as my father was well respected their and with my good grades in school, I got the job comfortably. I loved it but I was very green. My father and uncle had a boxing club around the corner from the B&I offices on the quay, so the Transport Boxing Club was my play ground each afternoon. At 18 I was fitter than ever, and i started thinking of getting fit enough to do something special but I didn't no what it.
was.

It was no 1985, I had just turned 19, and everything looks pretty good for me. Little did I know what happened next.

After a marathon journey, Frank Muldowney pushing Harvey has now walked 5,000km's for peace across Australia, from Perth to Sydney. It is now set on the 29th July, Sunday morning, to walk across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, hoping to bring as many friends as possible on this short but symbolic walk.

Since Frank arrived Sydney, many obstacles have occured, which has delayed the momentum of the walk, but at the same time, Frank has met many Irish friends in the city who may just build even more interest in this meaningful walk. He now has more time to get a large number of peaceful minded people to create a peace walk across this famous bridge.

On the road with Nathan driving Namaste behind - At the statue of Mohandas Gandhi in Canberra.

The Walk for Peace across Sydney Harbour Bridge -

Sunday 11.00 am - July 29th
Meeting at the Circulat Quay - Wharf 6
Walk planned to end at Lavender Bay
Please join this walk, and bring your own video and still cameras where I can add what you recorded on this web site.

The Media Release of the blog - http://harvey.travellerspoint.com/49/
has been sent to all the newspapers, radio and TV stations.

Frank hopes to start the walk, north to Newcastle, early in August.

Frank Muldowney in Bargo on his 6000-kilometrewalk across Australia for world peace.

By Michelle Fenech

IRISHMAN Frank Muldowney is walking across Australia for world peace – but he could not resist stopping at the Bargo pub. He began walking from Perth to Byron Bay in April last year, pushing an orange wheelchair carrying Harvey, an imaginary figure for peace and kindness. He had covered 4926 kilometres when the Advertiser met him on the freeway last Thursday. Mr Muldowney said he is spreading the word on how we can achieve world peace by 2015 and that Harvey was a reminder that the world will
remain disabled until we have peace.

‘‘Harvey is whatever you want him to be – he is your own dream for peace,’’ he said. ‘‘If you think about it, all of the peaceful people like Martin Luther King and Mother Theresa are still alive, you just can’t see them anymore.’’

Mr Muldowney has completed walks for charity in France, Spain, Ireland and Peru since 1989 – millions of steps and each one part of a pilgrimage of peace. ‘‘The Camino de Santiago is the oldest pilgrimage in the world with 20,000 walkers a year, and the wisdom and peace that grows into the hearts of every pilgrim spreads to others,’’ he said.

‘‘This is why I am trying to create a pilgrimage of peace here in Australia, then link this walk to Ireland, the UK and beyond. ‘‘I like to use an Albert Einstein quote: ‘Imagination is more important than knowledge; knowledge is limited, imagination encircles the entire world’. ‘‘I believe it is time to start thinking this way, as imaginations, visions of peace, are the way to become a reality.’’

EDITORIAL

Frank’s walking does the talking

WORLD PEACE - It’s the professed ambition of past and present world leaders – and beauty pageant contestants. But can it be achieved by 2015?
Frank Muldowney believes it can be done and he is walking across the country to spread the word.

It was Thursday when I received a call from a friend of mine who works at Bargo Hotel. She told me about the interesting Irishman who visited the pub on his way from Perth to Byron Bay, ‘‘walking for world peace’’. When I first spoke to Frank I was intrigued by the imaginary figure he had created. Frank has pushed ‘‘Harvey’’ across the country in a wheelchair and says that Harvey serves to remind us that the world is disabled until we achieve world peace.

What makes Frank even more interesting is that he suffered
from a life-threatening brain haemorrhage when he was 19. He said that since then he has wanted to inspire as many people as he could with his philosophy of peace – that it is here. Frank also told me that he was inspired by people like the Dalai Lama, Mahatma Gandhi, Terry Fox, Martin Luther King and Mother Theresa. After speaking with Frank I was inspired by his determination to complete his walk and achieve his ultimate goal. He told me that by announcing a year for world peace – 2015 – people would be more focused.

Is he onto something?

When I think about all of the bad news we see in the media every day I amreminded of how far we are from any sort of peace. But perhaps if our attitudes changed. . . I understand that walking across a country is different to running one, but maybe if the leaders of the world thought more like Frank we wouldn’t be in such a mess. Because although world peace seems so far away, to Frank it
is not.

Maybe Frank is right, and if everyone believes that peace is as close as 2015 then it will happen. Gandhi once said you must ‘‘be’’ the change that you want to see in the world – and that’s exactly what Frank Muldowney is being.

mfenech@mail.fairfax.com.au

Happy days with Namaste parked as resturant, shower, accommodation and a advertising board!

It is a short message that Namaste 'the headquarters' of the journey for the last 5 months has come to an end. She has gathered a lot of technical problems on the journey, and the costs were mounting. Nathan and I knew it was coming to an end, but Andrew and Daphne are now taking care of this lovely vehicle in Newcastle, and just as we were leaving back to Sydney, the engine started blowing smoke out of the engine and the bus called it a day.

The best of friends, Nammy and Harvey.

Daphne drove us to the train station to send us back to Sydney where the walk had ended in Liverpool, and now I will be making a base in the city to make a new trailer behind me, so I can bring all the essentials with me for the rest of the last journey to Byron Bay - very like the way I walked around Ireland 14 years ago. If I get a decent deal for a 2 berth van is also an option where Nathan can still be with me to Byron Bay, which would be great for both of us.

So it seems a little sad that I will not be living in Namaste when I end this long journey, but there is a great feeling of understanding and achievement between Nathan, myself and 'Nammy' which we lived in for approx 1,600km of driving for 2 months, and the number of people we met is now part of our lives.

Thank you Nathan for covering the longest drive of your life so far, and thank you Namaste for getting us to Sydney which was our aim from the beginning.

Namaste to Namaste!

Frank Muldowney

img=http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/46130/Harvey%5Fposter%2Ejpg]
Harvey's poster by Jennifer Watson

Harvey has now reached the big city. The walk ended just past Liverpool, just 33k short of the city centre. I will be based here for a while now looking for publicity when Harvey crosses the Harbour Bridge.

It will be the last drive with Namaste (the bus), due to the problems and cost that occured in the last 2 weeks, and the road after Sydney being a fast dangerous freeway. The last part of the journey will be the old way, me and Harvey, a trailer and tent. This will make the last journey safer, cheaper and a touch of freedom as I will not be able to do any internet publicity work - a blessing in disguise). I am in no rush now. Namaste is now parked not far from Newcastle where Andrew and Daphne (close friends of Jacky and I) will take care of our sick little bus that was our home for a long journey.

Memories of the beginnings in Perth and the Nullarbor

A special thank you to Nathan, who has driven over 1,500km (forward and backwards as the back up team), and spreading awareness in the towns on the way. I think Nate will stay in Sydney for a while to see his next adventure, maybe continue seeking for 'Happy Guy' who you can read about him on Nathan's Facebook web page. It was a tyring journey as the traffic was hectic from Melbourne, and I believe we only had a handful of nights where we could just relax parked in nature. On the way, we met over 40 inspiring people on the way from Violet Town to Bowral, shook hands with Dalai Lama and the Irish Ambassador, gave out over 500 fly letters and had interviews with local radio stations and ABC Life Matters and Triple J. There were several excellent articles in the newspapers, Canberra Times, Southern Highlander, The Goulburn Post all accurate and impressive articles which will spread the story forward. The journey from Melbourne to Canberra to Sydney was a success.

Now a time to wait, and find the best route and plan to Byron Bay.

Namaste having a word with Harvey...

Just on the last walk to Goulburn, and the bus 'Namaste' (or Nammy) decided to have a little snooze in the morning.

Nathan and I both thought is was a battery problem, but no, it is the started has just gone 'kaput' and Namaste is now being taken care of by the mechanic's of Goulburn.

This means a day of leisure for me to rest my feet, but still things to do. Nathan is giving blood to the Red Cross, we were intervied by the Goulburn Post also, and we alert the local radio stations, and the school. It is a little frantic to do so much in one day, not forgetting to eat and wash ourselves when we have a chance.

Nathan's brave donation. Bill's family in Goulburn.

Nathan has come to be 'The special one', as after his blood donation he is B positive! Me being Irish and common, my blood wasn't really wanted as I am from the 'mad cow disease' part of the world, thus Nate is a much more wanted person in this funny town. Well done Nate :-)

NEW SHIRTS

We are both modelling the new T shirts -

I was asked, 'if its 2015 for world peace then what time and date?' I replied, 22nd January, 1pm. Nathan believes it will be 1.03pm but we will try not to argue of those 180 seconds.

It all looks like a joke, and yes I am smiling, but jokes aside, if one believes in peace then what are you doing about it, and if so, then when? I hope this way of thinking will persuade people to act more rather than just talking about it.

It has raised a few eyebrows, and gets even more confusing when people asked who announced world peace by 2015. I just say, Harvey announced it, the peacemaker, who else can.