On Our Way

We are off. Casey slept most of the flight and he made it to London for the first time. Unfortunately our five-hour layover is too short to quickly take the tube into the city and show him Big Ben, the House of Parliament, London Bridge or Buckingham Palace. His only experience of his first trip to England will be in Terminal 5 at London Heathrow. While I regret this, I’ve filed it under “sorry-we-can’t-do-everything.” He is already missing 17 days of 7^th grade and I didn’t want to pull him out any more to take an extra day in London.

People kept asking me if I was ready to go. No, I wasn’t. But I did all I could do. Earlier tonight I remembered I forgot to stop my grandmother’s grandfather clock, and I’m sure I’ll remember more tasks as the journey progresses—but I’m content. The mortgages will be paid, my business day-to-day operations are in very capable hands, a friend is staying at my house with Rusty and our cat and Casey’s sister, Dawna, who aged out of foster care last weekend, is well situated at her new home with my friends in Bellingham.

My 19-year old nephew is struggling with substance abuse in Bellingham. He moved here from Maryland a few months ago and stayed in a clean and sober house for a few months, but a little over a week ago he was expelled. He dropped by my office yesterday (I had promised him a carton of cigarettes for Christmas and he always shows up for that) just as I was getting ready to leave. We talked a little, I told him I loved him, I reminded him of the steps he can take if he chooses to be clean, I hugged him goodbye and then I let it go. I’ve done all I can do. As much as I wish I could be in Bellingham over the holidays to be supportive of my nephew, Casey’s sister, my ailing dog and to be with my friends, it feels more important to take this trip with my dad, mom and Casey now.

My father’s diagnosis of Lewy Body Disease is a slow incurable death sentence characterized by the progressive symptoms of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. He already gets confused, mixes up his personal pronouns and can’t button his own shirts. I want to enjoy all the time I can before his inevitable deterioration makes a trip like this impossible. I know having me along will make the cruise much easier for my mom. Women usually bear the brunt of being the caregiver for their husbands, and my mom appreciates having me along.

Casey still has a nasty cough. I took him to the doctor on Friday and they ruled out pneumonia or croup. Still, every few minutes he lets out a loud, phlegmy cough. Earlier today I discovered an advantage in this for us. The airport lounge was a little crowded and Casey wanted to watch TV. We sat down and a few minutes later he loudly coughed. The people sitting around us all looked to see where it came from. I could sense their discomfort. After a few more coughs, our neighbors started drifting away. Within 5 minutes we had the TV all to ourselves. No one in an airport wants to be near a wheezy 12-year old. In London Casey and I approached the concierge to use one of the three cabanas in the Concorde Lounge. After a few coughs from Casey we found ourselves with three hours of privacy in the lounge’s Cabana. Casey relaxed in an oversized chair, eating ice cream, watching British kid shows while I took a shower. He has no idea how unique his airport experience is.

In less than a day we will be in Africa. I’ve never been to Capetown, but I know it’s considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We’ve arranged for a private tour guide for the 2-days we are there before boarding Nautica. Our plan is to board Nautica Saturday night, leave the ship on Sunday morning and fly to Sabi Sands (considered by many to be the best safari country in South Africa), before catching a flight to rejoin the ship in Durban on Wednesday. Visiting South Africa is a dream of my dads, so the next week promises to be fantastic.

Thanks for reading,

Jack