french-canadian women and ecuadorian men

My plane sat on the tarmac in Houston, Texas awaiting our turn to take to the sky. The sky was glowing bubble gum pink and the plane filled with a warm, gentle light as people fidgeted and adjusted items and settings to ensure their flight was to their liking. I didn't move a muscle. I sat with my coat and scarf in my lap and a small mile on my face, as if I knew something wonderful that noone else knew.

I spoke candidly with a French-Canadian woman, presumably in her 60's, who had lost her husband five years earlier and decided to travel the entire world in her days of retirement. She was very clean, sweet, and had pearls around her neck. She had moved to my empty row to escape being squished between two of her travel mates, which reminded me of the book I have been reading, 'A Woman Alone' which is comprised of short stories from women who have traveled all over without accompaniment or regret. My smile grew slightly.

Her gentle, feminine hands were manicured like my grandmother's, and though proved that she definitely took care of herself, showed experience. One day my hands will look like hers, and it will be an honor. I will wear this badge of experience and adventure with pride. Until then, she really reminded me I need to take better care of my skin.

The French-Canadian woman and I chatted about travel, food, experiences, people, and the things that made us happiest. As she asked me questions about my life, I was honest (even if reluctantly) and wondered, "Would she approve if I am honest?" Wow. I had come to respect this woman like a family member. Why did I care if she approved of me living with two gentlemen? To no surprise, she thought it was fantastic and applauded my bravery in my endeavors.

As we flew over endless water, we watched the sun set, experiencing oranges and reds never seen before by these eyes. Thunderheads created stunning silhouettes out of our window and we would occasionally stop chatting about her apartment in France or my Spring Break in Japan to just admire.

As the sun finally disappeared into the blackened Gulf of Mexico, I knew it was just me, the French-Canadian woman, and 70 travelers without a clue as to the dance I was doing on the inside. I sat quietly and soaked it all up. The massive belly laugh of the handsome 30-something Ecuadorian man to my left and a row behind brought a smile to my face every time he made a joke at his friend's expense, half in English, half in Spanish. I cocked my headed to the side every time the cat let escape a 'meow' from under an unidentified passenger's seat, as I kept forgetting it too was on an adventure with us. I sat in stunned disbelief at the silence of the half dozen babies on my flight, and prayed I didn't jinx it. I tried to pick up as much of the Spanish conversations as I could, then responded to them in my mind, hoping I'd gotten it right, but being showed up by the native speakers. I tried to guess who was Ecuadorian and who was a fellow foreigner by looking for passports and language guides or listening for murmured words over the buzz of engines of my 737 delivery vessel.

Yet, there was a strange calm to my venture. I wondered if perhaps, when I woke up in the morning, that the little girl inside me would burst out. Do not make the mistake of thinking I wasn't ecstatic, because I was thrilled! I believe I was just overwhelmed and still in disbelief.

Immigration was a breeze, in fact, the immigration official was a young, handsome gentleman who wrote his phone number on my paper work and asked if I would teach him English & he would teach me Spanish. Nice, Ecuador, way to welcome a lady...

My roommates, Bryan and Ian, picked me up at the airport and exceeded all of my hopes and expectations. We promptly opened the bottle of Captain Morgan rum (which you cannot buy in Ecuador, so I brought as a token of my gratitude) and got to know each other. At 5:30 am we all decided this was a great match for roommates and went to bed.

This morning, I awoke to smooth jazz colada morada, chamomile tea, and a fresh start in my life.

xx.a