The First Pagoda By Dr. Maxine Thompson http://www.maxineshow.com http://www.maxinethompson.com
(Dedicated to
Memory of My Father, Mervin Vann)
"Impossibilities are merely things of which we have not learned, or which we do not wish to happen." -- Charles W. Chesnutt, American Writer
In 1998, when my father was seventy-eight, he flew for eighteen hours to visit my younger sister Sonya who lived in Japan.
At time, I remember thinking that he was too old. What had gotten into Daddy? My mother had been dead for about five years and, unlike my six siblings’ and my dire predictions that he wouldn’t live one year without her, he was appearing to have a new lease on life. Our father had become this bossa-nova-ing, cavorting world traveler. Although he still had crippling arthritis, he got around, hobbling, limping, but still moving.
He stayed in Japan for two months and came back a changed man. He even wrote us letters, which was a first for him, because he was not a letter writer. (He always counted on my mother to write letters to us.)
Well, like that old saying goes, “Until you walk in my shoes, you can’t sing my blues.
Now, as a grandmother of five, I just returned from a nine-day trip to Beijing, China. I went with a group of 40 business persons from different minorities.We also visited Shanghai, Suzhou and Hangzhou all modern, progressive cities in south of China. For a modest price, trip included round-trip air tickets, local tour bus transportation, accommodations at 5 star hotels, meals throughout trip, business matching, factory touring and networking during governmental banquets.
I even climbed famous Great Wall of China. Although I only made it to first Pagoda, I saw that as being symbolic of steps I’ve had to take to go from being an employee to being a business owner to now being an International Trade Business person.
For others who would like to try new things, I say, "Go for it." I have a saying, “The last time I checked, you’re going to be dead a long time, so why keep putting off what you want to do? (This includes writing a book, if that's your desire.)
I speak from experience. In past, with my writer’s overactive imagination, I envisioned all types of future disasters that never happened. This kept me from enjoying life fully, but now I find, as I get older, I am throwing my caution to wind and going for gusto of life—whatever it has to offer. I can’t recount how many things I held back on while I raised three children. (I only flew once every other year because if there was a plane crash who would raise children and other such foolishness I concocted) At any rate, now everyone is grown and as young folks say, “It’s on.”
I want to taste all that is good and different about life. I want to come outside my backyard and experience world. I want to see things from a new perspective. For example, I have now eaten bird’s nest soup, learned a few words in Chinese, and learned how to haggle with street vendors over nice gifts such as real pearls. Needless to say, I had time of my life.
