I have a friend, a distant friend, named Bob (not his real name). I call him distant because, although we lived very near each other for a while, we were never real close. Most of that was my fault. I am not the kind of person that opens up to others. I think I am, but have been told enough times that I am not, that I know I am not. Bob taught me the art of enjoying everyday life. I want to tell you, in a couple of stories the awakenings that Bob brought.
The first of these awakenings is that people will give.
I have always been a geek, loving techie things, but I am also very tight-fisted with my money. I never seem to be able to let go of coin of the realm for my enjoyment. I would rather suffer and then piss and moan.
CD players had not been on the market for very long, yes, I know that was a thousand years ago, and I wanted one bad! I would not spend the money for one, but I wanted one. I like music and my wife is a music addict. We had a dual cassette player that would play one cassette tape after the other, but it broke. Why, after only being played continually for ten years the thing would shut down and refuse to work anymore is beyond me. I moaned to Bob and he encouraged me to go out and buy a CD player. Oh no! Spend money! Maybe next year. We could hum after all.
On night, while the family sat eating dinner, I heard a knock at the door. I answered it and there stood Bob. He had his old CD player in his hands and he shoved it into mine. He told he me just bought a new one and this one was now mine. I offered him money which he refused and walked away.
Enjoying everyday life for our house was having music and now we had it again! I don't even remember finishing my meal. We soon had a CD player hooked up and could play our CD. Yes, we only had one and now I had to go buy more. Letting go of money again!
The next lesson in awakenings was something much larger.
When we first met, my wife and I, who was then just my girlfriend, spent two weeks hiking in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in California. We loved to camp. When our kids came along, we tried a few tent excursions, but it was hard with three small children.
One evening, we were notified of Bob's presence in our driveway by the sound of his very large pick-up truck pulling in. Bob and his wife didn't use it often, mostly to go camping. It had the biggest camper on the back that I had ever seen.
They got out of the truck walked up to us and handed us the title. They told us that they were selling it to us for the ungodly cheap sum of eight or five hundred dollars, I don't remember which. They said it was ours (it was already signed over) and we could pay as and when we could.
We were absolutely dumb-struck! We had never even talked about this. They decided that this was just what we needed to take our kids camping. It was. For several years, until we outgrew it and the truck started to rust away, we used that camper. All our kids talk fondly about their memories of that old truck and camper.
I wish I could say that Bob taught me well enough that I continued my lessons in awakenings and enjoying everyday life, but I am still too tight-fisted and have to be reminded now and then to let go and have fun. I will say that Bob's lessons did help.
As we go through life, we can either piss and moan, as I am wont to do, or we can be open to it, like my friend. Life is a banquet, a journey. If we open to it and enjoy it, then we are much happier. If we think we have to "get somewhere" or "achieve something" we may do those things, but we may miss all the stuff along the way.
My next post will be about another lesson in awakenings that Bob gave me in enjoying everyday life. It was more that these two combined and it was one of the best times my wife and I have ever had. It was a dream come true.
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