His Next Journey

  We got an early morning text message from Carrie on Monday. Her friend, Robbie, had drowned in a river near his home. She was flying to California to be with his family.
  I was grateful that she had let us know that she was travelling. A few years back we had told her that she needed to let someone in the family know when she was travelling for her own safety. Hard on the heels of the gratitude was shock. We knew Robbie. It was way too soon for him to leave on his next journey. I felt bad for all his friends that he had made all around the world. I felt especially bad for his parents and sister. They were a close family who lived and ran a winery in California.
  I'm not sure how Robbie and Carrie met. My first meeting with his was many summers ago. He was biking across the country and wanted to visit Carrie who was living with us at the time. We had plenty of room so he stayed with us. He was a lanky young man with dark curly hair. he had a handsome face and striking eyes. It was easy to see why Carrie found him so attractive.
  He was also a gentleman in every sense of the word. He was respectful of me as Carrie's stepmother and also of C. He was intelligent , well read and an excellent conversationalist. That surprised me as most people his age are not so skilled in the art of conversation.
  It was clear that he loved the outdoors. He and Carrie spent the weeks that he was here outside exploring the area on bicycles. I don't remember either of them being in the house much.
  He was a good cook. One evening he prepared a meal which the four of us ate outside on our deck. We spent an enjoyable few hours eating and talking, happy in each other's company. He also made one of the best carrot cakes I ever had. The only one I had that was better was the one served at our second wedding. I remember he even cleaned up the kitchen.
  My only worry during the weeks he stayed with us was over his tent. He had pitched it in the middle of our downstairs family room. I knew that Scamp and Colby were spending time investigating it and I worried that they might damage it in some way. (The tent was fine.)
  Eventually it was time for him to move on. He packed up his tent and other gear. C and I drove him and Carrie to a bike trail near the edge of one of the suburbs. They were going to bike for a while together and then he would head off for home.
   Over the years he wandered around staying somewhere for awhile and then returning home to California. I think he had travelled overseas to England and had spent some time in France. I'm fairly sure he had been all over the United States.
  A few years ago he came back to visit. He and Carrie came over and shared another meal with us. He was still the same young man that I remember from before, but I sensed that maybe something was troubling him. I've always felt a little motherly affection for him and tried to show him that we loved and cared for him. After the meal we took them to a place that we like for dessert. C teased him about looking out the window at the people passing by.
  I gave him a hug when they left and told him he was always welcome in our home. Maybe it was the imagination of a middle aged woman, but I thought I saw his eyes get a little moist. Maybe we had been more than just a place to stay for him. He told me he appreciated that. He gave C a hug and then he and carried left. That was the last time I saw him.
  I would sometimes wonder about him. He seemed like such a restless soul. Would he ever settle down, maybe marry and have a family? I just couldn't picture this kind of a future for him. I saw him more like Vianne, the main character in the movie Chocolat. Like Vianne, I could see him roaming from place to place meeting new people, making new friends leaving the place a bit better than when he arrived. He'd come back to his home, work a bit in the winery, maybe tell stories of his adventures to visitors and perhaps a few wide eyed young family members. Perhaps he'd write a book about his travels like Jack Kerouac.
  None of that was in his future as it turns out. Instead he has started out of his next journey, one started way too soon. He leaves behind his parents, his sister and many many friends who are probably even now converging on his home. They will gather this coming weekend to remember him and hopefully to celebrate his life.
   His sister posted the final picture that was taken of him. His back is to the camera and he's looking ahead. That's one lesson we can take from his short life. Look  ahead. Life is a journey and there is only one direction, forward. We can remember that the miracles of the world outdoors are just as compelling as the miracles of technology indoors. We can remember that sometimes the best way to explore is on a bike or on your feet.
  I'm grateful that he was friends with Carrie. She experienced new things and had a lot of fun. Last summer she and several others performed  a Shakespeare play in the performance space at the winery. I don't know if Robbie ever did any acting, but I remember he did have a bit part. I hope he had a good time with it.
   Auf wiedersehen Robbie and thank you........