When touring, I set out with the expectation that I will have interesting encounters during my tour. To ensure this, I put myself in an open disposition towards encounters. I’ve often found that the difference between a good encounter and a missed encounter is just the willingness to be open and present for it.

And so it is with this gentleman. I could have just walked past him and not said a word, but I look at him and ask how he's doing. He replies the usual and mentions something about the weather. We get around to discussing weather anomalies and this turns to how winters were far more rigorous years ago.

I agree and mention that when I was a kid, we certainly seemed to have more snow. He replies that when he was a kid the snow was so high you almost had to dig tunnels to get access to stores. He said this was back in the early 30's, and then volunteers as to how he is 83 yrs old! I look at this man and marvel. He has high energy, looks lean and trim, is articulate, and barely looks 65.

The gas attendant shuts off the outside lights as a hint for him to go in and pay. As he comes back out, we stand there in the semi-dark discussing life in general. He tells me that his long-time wife had recently passed away. This had been hard for him to go through, but then he had decided to pick himself up and start his zest for living again. He felt sure that his wife would have wanted that.

He confides that he had recently met a younger woman and was re-living the excitement of romance. They are keeping a full life. She has a condo that they use for skiing in the winter; he has a motorhome that they use for touring in the summer.

And then, afraid that I'd be thinking of possibly diminished faculties, he assures me that he still has a lot of energy. To prove this, he instantly bends at the waist and easily touches his fingers to the ground and then bounces back up. He said that he exercises regularly and still feels peppy. Most of all, he confides, he still has lead in his pencil and enjoys using it. I look at him surprised and say that I certainly hope he keeps it up (pun intended) and we both laugh.

I find it interesting how older people easily confide. But this also serves to remind me that old folks were once young. There's a whole lifespan behind them. They could have been and done many things. Yet, younger people will often look at them and see nothing but an old person, discounting what they once were. I guess some of these older folks might be more sensitive to that, wanting to make sure that they are not perceived as old and discounted. This gentleman probably felt that while he related to me his new romance.

He then goes on to tell me that he believes a main secret of not growing old and morose is to keep fit and keep with the times. That if you stop evolving with the times, you get old. So he always tries to keep tabs with what the younger generations are doing and thinking, of what the trends are. That's why he was looking at my bike, saddled with luggage. To keep up with what current bikes are about. This reminds me of a quote by Emerson: “People do not grow old; when they cease to grow, they become old.” I find his attitude inspiring and I tell him so.

We part and I'm alone with my thoughts again. Traffic keeps getting lighter while rain and visibility get worse. The road becomes mildly curvy with frequent elevation changes. It will remain like this for a great portion of the ride. Temperature is around 7C (44F).

Bruno
Montreal, Canada