Earlier this summer, we took a trip across the pond. Usually, we take a trip like that in early to mid-September. It’s a great time to see Europe, with less crowds, a little cooler temps and it happens to be around my birthday. Well, we took that trip a little earlier this year and as my special day nears, it’s fun to start making goals for the year forward and check in on those objectives that were on last year’s list. Writing a novel or a series of short stories was an objective for 2025/26. On the trip this summer, I did, and the plan is to start to preview a few chapters to get some feedback-who knows, I could be horrible at this and a little exposure and evaluation from good readers could be useful. Anyway, the novel is under way, the outline is there and it’s exciting. I was going to preview last week, but it just didn’t seem right with the funerals and a little sadness as we celebrated the lives some pretty incredible people in our small town in Michigan…
Back to the time away (I know there’s a little back and forth here, but it all will tie in nicely, you’ll see). Time away gives you space removed from a regular routine and responsibilities so that you can think; at least that’s what it does for me. I like engaging in times sightseeing, exercising for a little bit of the day and then sometime in the afternoon to plan, write and to think about how grateful I am for the gifts, God has given me…
On the day we were departing, we had arranged for a ride to pick us up to take us to the closest major airport. We were about an hour away, traveling from a seaside town to catch our flight. As we waited, we saw the driver arrive. It was a young man with chin length hair, slicked back, nice sunglasses, white pressed shirt, black slacks and a nice pair of black loafers-he reminded me of a young Rafa Nadal. He introduced himself, put our bags in the car and we took off. I looked at the water until I could no longer see it and all I could see around me was countryside as we drove inland. I don’t recall the music when we got into the vehicle, but as we drove through farmland, Whitney Houston’s song from the movie The Body Guard soundtrack, “ I Have Nothing” came on. I had not heard it in quite a while. The 1993 song, written by David Foster and Linda Thompson, brought back memories from the early years of our marriage. Whitney Houston’s first album was the sound track to the mid-late eighties when we dated-she also happened to be my age.For some reason, my eyes teared up and tears started to come down behind my sunglasses. Maybe it was the pre-birthday nostalgia or sense of gratitude for a nice trip and time away, but I said to myself you have so much to be grateful for; God has been so good to me. The cab driver could see the tears in his room mirror and he asked if the music was OK. I said, “Yes.”
When the song finished, I started imaging the novel that was begun on the trip; the list and description of characters, the outline, the first chapter and the setting and theme of the following chapters. This had been a goal for years and here it was, taking place, a tale unwinding with, what seemed to me, like interesting characters with a common theme. Who knows where it will go or what will come of it, but without a story, another book has not a chance of being published. This was goal and it was starting to take shape…
Life is there for us to take a hold of, to create our own path and story, to take a bite out of it and live it or simply stand by and watch other live out theirs. Each one of us is responsible for how we live out our lives. How will we spend the time, who will we spend it with, how will we choose to dole out the minutes, hours and days we are given? Will we live intentionally and honorably, fulfilling admirable obligations or will we live them empty and unintentional? Will we make an effort to be with and see those we care for or will we sit on the sidelines and wait for others to make the plans, hoping to be included? Will we be mindful and care for our bodies, the vehicles to get through life with or will we leave it to fate? It’s all up to us, as we are the authors of our stories and songwriters of the tunes that move us through the journey…
Do you take the time to be aware? Aware of the clock ticking, the words and tone you use (“sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt you-Words Will Hurt”)? Aware of how your days are spent, of the warm sunshine, listening to the little voices of grandchildren and the activities that give you pleasure whether it is coffee with a good friend, a little art project, reading a good book or taking a tour of an ancient site? Sometimes I think, what if my eyes are harmed in an accident or legs are injured so I could not see a pretty sunset again or the faces of my family, appreciate the walk from the grocery store to the car? Do I study those faces so I never forget or appreciate a pink orange sunset? It would be sad to not appreciate these gems of life…
Anyway, time away was good for the mind and heart. Returning refreshed and rested to look forward to another year of life and treasures from God to be grateful for each and everyday and to give thanks for a Great Days …
Here you go…
Table for Ten at Seven O’Clock
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are productions of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead or actual events is purely coincidental.
Chapter 1
Nicholas and Margaux had taken an early morning flight from Barcelona to Athena to catch the cruise. They had spent a few days on Costa Dora, staying in a little seaside town with a lovely little brick-way along the beach that Margaux had learned it was called a corniche, during their stay. She had been there once when she was in college with friends and she had always wanted to go back. The little flat above a restaurant on the corniche was a far cry from the boutique hotel, Nicholas had booked, that had once been a sanitarium in the 1920s, located on Costa Dora because of the healing properties of the sand. It was a pleasant little holiday town that looked as if generational families they observed might have possibly come back year after year. In the evenings families walked the corniche, babies in strollers, older children skipping along, parents, grandparents and even some great-grandparents seemed to gather as they may have for decades. What a lovely ways to begin their September European adventure before embarking on their small cruise ship in the port of Athens. Even the color of the plush aqua beach towels that the attendant placed on guests chairs would be remembered by . What a way to start a vacation…
The port of Athens is quite a drive from the airport. After getting Greek pastries and coffee in the airport, they got in the cue for cab. A tall man named Costa, who spoke fairly good English drove them on that early Sunday morning. There was very little traffic and even though it was early, the sun was bright and hot already. It still felt like the heat of summer…
Valentina too took an early flight to get to Athens. She departed Catania, Sicily early. Sicily was still hot too. She liked the summers in Sicily. After closing on her restaurant in Naples, Florida in June, she stayed around to tie up loose ends, take care of some repairs on her two rental properties and get her renter settled in her home for a few months while she was gone to visit her parents, daughter, friends and do some traveling. Valentina may have not had any formal education beyond high school but she was very good with money. La Luna, the restaurant in Florida was small but she had done quite will with it and between the sale of it and her rentals, she had made a good life for herself following her divorce. She had put the time in, grew the restaurant but rarely took very little time for herself. On the off season, she did her improvements, visited her son, daughter and parents and then got back early to prepare for the snowbirds which seemed to start earlier and earlier as the years progressed. She was glad for the opportunities that had come her way. Now, it was her time. When she saw and add for Sea Quest Cruises she felt a calling. Being flexible with her time, she inquired if one week was better priced than another, she assumed pricing might be based on supply and demand, and it was. She was able to snag two weeks on the Sea Quest Odyssey for the price of one since early September was a hard time to sell…
Hugo Prince and Charlotte Montgomery had arrived in Athens on Friday. It was good time for both of them. Hugo had wrapped post filming two weeks prior and Charlotte’s boss, the actress, Kathryn Thompson, was off to spend two months with her daughter and her family in Vermont. Charlotte would check in with her but basically, she was on vacation. She loved her job. She had known Kathryn since she was a little girl. Although she knew what she did, they saw many of her movies, Kathryn was very much like an Aunt to her. Maybe it was the loss of her mother that gave her the ability to connect with older women so well like her grandmother, aunts and with Kathryn. She and Hugo stayed at a nice place on the water in Athens and hired a boat on Saturday to cruise around to see the city from the water. Charlotte carefully planned her wardrobe with plenty of linen. Growing up, her family traveled to France often, some to Italy, but she had only been on a school trip to Athens. She and Hugo both enjoyed history and looked forward to touring the ancient sides in the ‘cradle of civilization.’ Their previous trips had been weekend get aways to historic old cities in Europe. Charlotte looked forward to quiet dinners for two and conversations about where and when they’d marry. After breakfast, the car the concierge had booked arrived and the bellman loaded their bags into the black German van. As they got into the van, they looked like a European jet set two-some, Charlotte in her white cotton Doen dress, straw hat, dark green aviators and flat Italian sandals. Hugo was cruise ready as well, in his tan cotton trousers, white linen shirt, light leather trainers and clubmaster sunglasses…
Milt and Rosemarie had spent the last week in Israel visiting his cousin Morrie. Milt and Morrie had been close since they were little growing up in Pittsburgh. Morrie had met his wife traveling out of college. Naomi had grown up in Tel Aviv. When they decided to marry, Morrie took a professorship at the University there. They had planned to stay a few years and move to the states. Instead they had made a life for themselves and raised two daughters. Their families usually got together once a year either in the States, in Israel or somewhere else. Morrie loved taking the Sachs site-seeing in Israel. He and Naomi drove Milt and Rosemarie to the airport. The last two years they had traveled to see Milt and Rosemarie due to the accident and Rosemarie’s recovery. They were so glad to have been together, healthy and mobile once again. Upon their arrival in Athens, Milt’s son had helped him arrange a car to be waiting for his parents to take them to the port to embark…
Edward Cline flew to Athens from Zurich. He had flown to Switzerland four days earlier. He wanted to do some hiking and meet up with a friend from high school who lived there. It was a pleasant trip. Edward was accustomed to traveling by himself. He was the kind of guy who was comfortable in his own skin. It was nice to see Mark who had grown up in the same neighborhood, they had played hockey together growing up north of Chicago. He took the job in Switzerland when his children were little and he and his wife raised their children there. They occasionally checked in with one another and met up when traveling. The flight from Zurich to Athens wasn’t too early and he was able to board the ship and get his bag unpacked before sailing. He was looking forward to getting a workout in the small but adequate gym, before dinner…
Phil and Susan Coughlin boarded first class to Athens on late Saturday afternoon. They both could sleep on long flights and after settling in, having their dinner, doing a little reading they nodded off to sleep. They wanted to catch a few games at the USOPEN before taking off on their cruise. They planned on a couple days in Athens after their cruise. They were able to see a few good matches. Living in the New York area all of those years it was something they did as a family. Now that they girls were off on their own, they went with friends. The girls occasionally came back, but they were busy with their own families and now that their kids were getting to pre-school age and school age, they were wrapped up with a new school year starting. Life changes. The cruise was the beginning of a new season for them as a couple. Phil was slowing down, Susan had retired from her part time job teaching Art; it was time to start a new chapter. They arrived in Athens, well rested and ready to embark on the Sea Quest Odyssey…
Christian was setting up the dining room with the other waiters. He had had a few hours off and he and his girlfriend, Francel had disembarked the ship and went to one of their tavernas for an early lunch. They had been there a few times this season and always were greeted by Gus, the owner. They talked about their families back home and dreamed of places they’d like to go someday. Francel trained as an aesthetician and liked her role on the ship spa. She hoped to someday work at a medical spa in the Philippines. Her mom was a hairdresser back home and she liked spending time with her Mom at the salon after school and on Saturdays. After they left the taverna, the walked along the dock, picked up the essentials they needed, Francel liked to stop into a pharmacy to checkout the cosmetics and then it was time to get back to work before the new passengers embarked. Christian put his arm around Francel and he kissed her and said,
“Someday Francel, we’ll be passengers on a fancy ship like this”
“I was thinking the same thing too!” she said…
Next week: Chapter 2
