In
1984, while living in Bamberg, West Germany - I made a weekend trip to
Salzburg, Austria. I remember the shops and the tourists, as I walked
along the Judengasse (in the historical district).
While there, I purchased a bottle of "Stroh "Original Spiced" Rum 160 Proof".
I
kept that bottle for more than 20 years. As it sat on a shelf in my
study - among my books and many mementos from my travels - I always
planned to open it on the day that my first child was born.
For many reasons, that day never came.
And
so, as time passed, as the seasons turned, and as my hair thinned and
my waist thickened - the liquid in the bottle slowly began to evaporate.
When the bottle was down to
almost 50% - I threw it away...which was both an act of housekeeping -
and a metaphor for marking the end of a dream that never came to be.
If
a life is a series of acts - as in a play - I have hopes of being a
foster parent in a later act. Or, being a volunteer (or teacher) at an
orphanage.
A dream long past,
need not be dead. And opportunity is always available for the hand
trained to grasp it - and the eye trained to see it.
