Looking Back, Looking Ahead

Lots of catching up to do. It seemed like yesterday – it seemed like a century ago – that I was in Apache Junction, hiking in the Superstitions and hanging out with my now dear friend, Leanna. All too soon, it was time to make tracks. First stop, Tucson …

Here I am with Jody, someone I haven’t seen in more than 20 years. She is a friend of my sister, who suggested I look her up.

The pic I forgot to take was with Mary Wayne, whom I haven’t seen in 45 years. I was fortunate enough to catch her for late lunch-early dinner, just before she had to head out of town. Back then, we were both in our early 20s, with our careers lying ahead of us. Now, here we were, in our late 60s, our careers behind us. So many paths, so many journeys.

Song of Songs, they say, is Solomon in his youth. Proverbs is Solomon in middle age, Ecclesiastes Solomon in old age. My back-to-back meetings with Jody and Mary Wayne afforded me the rare opportunity for my old Solomon to pull up a chair with my two earlier Solomons. Is there a way to reconcile the three? Can we at least come to some sort of peace? No easy answers, but sitting down with people out of your distant past sure helps.

So I commend the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany them in their toil all the days of the life God has given them under the sun. – Ecclesiastes 8:15.