Into our lives and back out
Into our lives and back out was Originally Posted on May 24, 2004 by lavarock
Some times I see things from a different perspective than others do.
Last night as I got restless, I decided to go to the post office and grab some dinner. As I went down the outside stairs of the house I noticed a cat at the bottom of the stairs. It looked at me as I looked back. As I passed it and headed towards the truck, the cat meowed and disappeared. I can’t tell if this is the same cat I have seen here before or not, but in any event, it was gone.
Today as I headed up to Kailua-Kona to shop, I noticed a small grasshopper on my windshield. As I drove along it slowly and deliberately repositioned itself to hang on and not be swept away by the wind. It stayed on the glass most of the trip to Kona. As I stopped at a light, it rapidly went down the glass and hopped onto the wiper blade, where it remained until I stopped for an errand at the Royal Kona resort. I did not see when I returned to the truck.
On the same trip, I passed a frail elderly man walking down the road. I have seen him often enough, shuffling along, obviously unable to walk due to a medical problem. It seems to take him forever to get anywhere and he stops often.
On most of my Kauai trips I would pass the same stretch of beach and see the same homeless man in the same spot. The joke was that he had all he needed; a lounge chair on a beautiful stretch of beach, a 6 pack and a can of Raid (to chase away bugs). Island residents knew him or of him, there were many versions of stories about who he was and where he came from. Most knew him as “Jeff” or “Jeffrey” and over the more than 3 years or so I passed him, I saw that his health was getting worse. One trip I didn’t see him. Word was that he got sick and friends/residents had him somewhere being taken care of.
I do no know what happed to Jeff, nor to the grasshopper. I don’t know who the man is on the road, but I’m sure locals do.
People and things come into our lives. Sometimes they stay and sometimes they don’t. You travel the world and strike up a conversation with a fellow passenger and never know if you will meet them again or not.
Sometimes I get an email from someone, I reply and weeks or months later I get another email. Sometimes I have to dig back to see what we spoke about. Sometimes I remember.
Weeks ago I read a message in a forum about a woman who was to be married in Kona. She had some concerns about the plans for the wedding. I passed along some info to a friend who addressed them behind the scenes. A week or so ago I was talking with this friend and another couple sat next to us and we all chatted. The next day it struck us. This was the Father and Mother of the bride! The wedding had been a big success. Here we were, 4 people meeting for a few minutes of chat, not realizing that had something in common after all.
I moved across the Pacific and found a grasshopper. I caused the grasshopper to move across town and we both passed the old man by the side of the road.
If I were a betting man I would say that:
1) I will NEVER see the grasshopper again
2) I probably will see the old man at least once more
3) The cat will probably be here much more often
4) As for Jeff… I can only hope that wherever he is, he still has his lounge chair, his 6 pack, a can of raid and a wonderful view!