I met Ray and his wife (whose name I never learned) last evening on a flight from Washington DC to San Francisco. My guess is that they are in their seventies, maybe older. It is hard to tell because they are very robust. They were my seatmates in 19D and 19E. I was in 19F. Over 2500 miles and 6 hours in a metal cigar tube traveling at 500 miles per hour, you are likely to end up in conversation with those randomly assigned to your row, especially when you are traveling alone. It was well into the flight when we finally conversed.
Ray and his wife are retired and live in Eureka, California. They have been married 52 years. He proudly offered that he was a retired teacher. He started as an art teacher, "but I taught everything they asked me to from 5th grade to 12th." This couple have seen the world. They have been to the Galapagos Islands and to Macchu Picchu in Peru. They have snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef. Last Christmas they went to Belize and went into the rain forest and out to the reef. They have been to the Serengeti and have been 2 feet from a leopard. Ray's eyes lit up, "We saw two lionesses catch and kill a gazelle!"
I asked, "Where next?" "South America" was the answer. "She doesn't want to go to Patagonia but I do. But she will go to Buenos Aires with me." Ray's wife did remark with some sorrow that they regret that they never expect to go to one destination that they have prized: the Seychelles. I was curious..."Why not?" Was their health going to prevent them? I wondered. "Because it is politically unstable and we suspect it will be for a long time to come." I should have known better by now......it wasn't that they couldn't go, it was that they shouldn't go.
We said our goodbyes, and then Ray got up. His wife helped him as he grabbed his white cane with the red tip and walked off the plane.
Ray was blind. He had been losing his vision successively over many years. The doctor in me wanted to ask why but I did not want to pry. The thoughts drifted to either diabetic retinopathy or maybe macular degeneration.
Ray did most of his travels after he lost most of his sight. But he saw the leopards and the lionesses and the reefs. He saw because and Ray his wife of 52 years are still driven at their young age to understand better the world in which they live. They know that to understand is to "go and see." But they see with all five senses. This is why Linda and I travel.
Ray and your bride: I honor you. I learn from you. I hope Linda and I are as robust as you, and will have the drive and strength to refuse to allow those inevitable physical infirmities to stop us.........political uncertainties may, but not physical ones.
Keep on chasing your dreams. Don't quit on the Seychelles just yet! And I will see you in Patagonia.
And P.S. This is for Jonathan...Ray is a diehard Yankee fan. He said anyone who can idolize a journeyman catcher is good enough to be a son-in-law! And then he went on to talk about the day that all 3 Dimaggios started in the same outfield.................
