As far as conversations during air travel goes, I haven't had any memorable experiences. I am usually too busy with my books or music, and occasionally, in-flight entertainment. I don't make a conscious effort to avoid conversations, in fact, I love conversing with strangers, but it just so turns out that I haven't had any. But somehow, I tend to attract wailing babies whenever I fly. However, that pattern was disrupted this time while traveling from London to Chennai as I met Michael.
Michael was born in Oxford, into an Irish family. He is married to a Dutch woman, and has been residing in Portugal for 18 years. He is seventy years-old, retired, and now spends his time traveling. He has a degree in history (one of the reasons why this conversation lasted almost 4 hours).
Michael was born in Oxford, into an Irish family. He is married to a Dutch woman, and has been residing in Portugal for 18 years. He is seventy years-old, retired, and now spends his time traveling. He has a degree in history (one of the reasons why this conversation lasted almost 4 hours).
It started with me
offering an Oreo cookie, which he politely refused. He asked me where I was from, and I gave him a rather needlessly elaborate response. I tend to do that sometimes. After getting to know his background, we settled on a current topic for a conversation: Chelsea's Champions League triumph over Bayern Munich. I was quick to boast off Chelsea's freshly achieved European glory. After ten minutes, we were touching upon every football topic that was on the news, from Di Matteo's unexpected success to the match-fixing scandal clouding Italy. It is common to see such enthusiasm and fervor for sports among people of my age, but this, this was something different. I saw myself in him. Fifteen minutes into this conversation and I knew my seven hours of flight would be a smooth and enjoyable one. It turned out to be just that.
Throughout the four hours of non-stop talking, our topics ranged from Dosa to the Battle of Stalingrad, from idol worship to the existence of God, and from Catalonia to Santa Maria Novella. After going through various topics in slightly less than three hours, supper was served. Soon, turbulence followed, which was followed by a nap.
Five hours of journey had passed. I skipped my second meal and opted for coffee instead. Michael went for Coffee and brandy. A little while later, my curiosity had the better of me. "So how did you meet your wife?", I asked him politely. Obviously, I wouldn't have asked him had he not told me earlier that he fell in love at the age of twenty-one.Love stories interests me a great deal. I didn't want to miss this story. He smiled and said, "It was during my college days." Not that different from the current generation after all, I thought. He went into further details on how there was stern resistance, both from his family and from hers, and other 'struggles' he had to cope back then. Bogged down my community hardliners, you could get an idea of the struggles he was constantly talking about. For a little while, it was like listening to a Bollywood movie narrative. Except, this was real with a happy ending. "And then after all the struggles, I finally got to marry her.", he said. I am sure I saw an ephemeral glimmer of pride in his eyes. Why not, I thought to myself. If you fought for what you believed in, and managed to achieve it, then you bloody hell should feel proud. It was a touching moment for him even after all these years.
For me, this conversation was all about heeding to what he had to say. For most part, I was merely a listener trying to gain as much knowledge and experience from Michael as possible. After all, he had seen it all, and had a rich collection of experiences and anecdotes to share with me. It's not everyday that you come across people who are openly willing to share their experiences to a complete stranger.
Soon, we were waiting to collect our bags from the baggage carousel. We were about to part ways when he said this, "Remember, you have the life ahead of you. Live it in any way you want to, but have one goal. That will define you." I didn't expect this. My mind was already on my eagerly awaiting parents. Today, after two weeks, his words resonate in my head. Constantly bothering me. In a good way. There was nothing magical in his words, just the usual statements elders make, but his timing, and delivery, had a significant effect on me.
Here's hoping I encounter many more people like Michael.
Throughout the four hours of non-stop talking, our topics ranged from Dosa to the Battle of Stalingrad, from idol worship to the existence of God, and from Catalonia to Santa Maria Novella. After going through various topics in slightly less than three hours, supper was served. Soon, turbulence followed, which was followed by a nap.
Five hours of journey had passed. I skipped my second meal and opted for coffee instead. Michael went for Coffee and brandy. A little while later, my curiosity had the better of me. "So how did you meet your wife?", I asked him politely. Obviously, I wouldn't have asked him had he not told me earlier that he fell in love at the age of twenty-one.Love stories interests me a great deal. I didn't want to miss this story. He smiled and said, "It was during my college days." Not that different from the current generation after all, I thought. He went into further details on how there was stern resistance, both from his family and from hers, and other 'struggles' he had to cope back then. Bogged down my community hardliners, you could get an idea of the struggles he was constantly talking about. For a little while, it was like listening to a Bollywood movie narrative. Except, this was real with a happy ending. "And then after all the struggles, I finally got to marry her.", he said. I am sure I saw an ephemeral glimmer of pride in his eyes. Why not, I thought to myself. If you fought for what you believed in, and managed to achieve it, then you bloody hell should feel proud. It was a touching moment for him even after all these years.
For me, this conversation was all about heeding to what he had to say. For most part, I was merely a listener trying to gain as much knowledge and experience from Michael as possible. After all, he had seen it all, and had a rich collection of experiences and anecdotes to share with me. It's not everyday that you come across people who are openly willing to share their experiences to a complete stranger.
Soon, we were waiting to collect our bags from the baggage carousel. We were about to part ways when he said this, "Remember, you have the life ahead of you. Live it in any way you want to, but have one goal. That will define you." I didn't expect this. My mind was already on my eagerly awaiting parents. Today, after two weeks, his words resonate in my head. Constantly bothering me. In a good way. There was nothing magical in his words, just the usual statements elders make, but his timing, and delivery, had a significant effect on me.
Here's hoping I encounter many more people like Michael.
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Here's hoping that you encounter many more people like Michael. :-)
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