People

I was searching my mind for a clever title for this post but there is no substitute for real. If this trip has been anything so far it has been an encounter with amazing people. Just plain people.

I’ve already shared Bill and Sky and Pat the mechanic but there have been so many many more. I might need to work backwards since John is on my mind tonight having been our latest acquaintance at the Riverview Cafe in Vero Beach. He has thousands of hours on the water in numerous places and now has me convinced I want to go to Bimini. ( only on a day with no north wind) He’s clearly a salty sailor with a Portuguese water dog we are scheduled to meet tomorrow.

We arrived at the Grill after a great dingy cruise around the area to get familiar with the layout of the mooring field. Just as we sat down at the bar and began to converse with the guys to our right we found ourselves front and center in an emergency situation . Our bar companion was having an episode, seizure, heart attack, stoke?? We were not real sure but he was stiff and rigid and his eyes were rolled by back. Yikes! Call 911!! Mac was a champ. Talking to him and keeping him calm. His pal shared that he had blood pressure issues. The medics were there in no time and after a few minutes he was actually able to walk out on his own. Praying all is well as I write this.

Daniel, the guy on the stool to my left, happened to be absent, in the men’s room, when the drama was unfolding. Upon his return he and I got to chatting as Mac and the EMTs were still engaged with the troubled gentleman. Turns out Daniel is a teacher and he shows me a card confirming that he has just finished his CPR recertification as of last Thursday. This is getting so interesting! He teaches at a private school here in Vero and we pass the next hour discussing the new world order of the classroom. Very interesting guy!

Backing up a bit, in Fort Pierce, ironically, we meet Tom and Betty, two retired educators from Long Island. Mac and he discuss their mutual love of the Tilley hat they are both wearing.

Twenty minutes before that we met Mikey who is parked on the stool to my left at the Manatee lounge for happy hour. We aren’t certain just how many wives he has had but he clearly has had a few and they are all in his rear view mirror at this point and they have most of his worldly assets.

One more that comes to mind is Mick, way back at the Tarpon Springs marina. First of all he can out talk any McTalklin I know and love. But his heart is huge. He shared all kinds of local history of the area and shared gardening tips as well since he had worked as a landscaper in the past. When we had to leave our boat to go back to Mississippi Mick was so helpful and attentive!

There are so many more I can not call their names to mind. Captains on the radio. Dock masters, deck hands, the bridge tender who told us ” that girl’s still got a lot of life in her” ,..!

When Mac asked me so many times over this past year why we were leaving the prettiest place on earth I just kept saying because there are people God wants us to meet. Every day of this journey has reiterated that message. There are people to meet at every turn.

Can’t wait for tomorrow!!