I chatted with an older gentleman at the store this evening. On the walk out to our cars, I asked if people had ever told him that he resembled Burt Lancaster. He said no, but that his father had, and that he considered it a compliment.
We spoke for a minute about Burt Lancaster movies, and I mentioned Field of Dreams, where Lancaster portrays ‘Moonlight Graham’, a subplot about a real baseball player who played only one inning in the majors, and was on deck when the game ended – preventing him from living his dream of batting in the majors. It is such a beautiful scene in such a beautiful movie. As we split up, I looked up to the west, and enjoyed the light of tonight’s incredible full moon in our cloudless sky.
I love the way things connect sometimes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9yrupye7B0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6bD23vEigE
If you are lucky enough to have a dozen or so childhood friends who will put up with you for a long weekend in the woods each year, don’t pass up the chance.
And if most of what you do in camp is waste time; just shooting the shit about old times, swimming, fishing, drinking too much, eating more than your share of foods you’ve been warned to avoid, and telling jokes too gross or inappropriate to even laugh at in more civilized surroundings – just do it. You can make up for these venial sins with acts of goodness, kindness, and fitness when you get home.
And if these guys, and your annual gathering, come to mean a lot to you, don’t be bashful; tell them that you love them. If those three words are a little hard to say all on their own, you can tag on ‘man’, or ‘bro’, whatever; it’s all good; your meaning will come across
Nothing lasts forever – don’t let the opportunity slip away unused.
