This is a great thread. Originally, I thought in terms of the traditional life milestones -- leaving home, getting accepted at and graduating from college and law school, gettting married etc. But then I thought about those days in my life that were simply sublime, the ones that never fade in the memory and make me happy each and every time I think about them. Most were simple activities, although generally in spectacular settings. The following are the most special, in no particular order.
1. A night in August 1983, about 4 am. I was in the Navy, an officer on a submarine. We were on the surface at night and I was the Officer of the Deck, driving the ship from the bridge (at the top of the sail). It was cold, but not uncomfortable. The sea was calm, a near full moon was out. We were just entering the Pacific reaches of the Straits of Magellan, at the southern tip of South America. It was just me and one lookout up in the sail. As we steamed along, our wake was phosphorescent green with the churned up krill and phytoplankton. Suddenly, we spotted two new bright green trails in the water, approaching the boat. As the trails drew near, we could see they were dolphins, who came up alongside the bow and jumped and played next to us. It struck me at that moment how beautiful life is.
2. A day in late January 1985. On a drive cross country, the young wife and I went to the Grand Canyon. The sun was shining brightly and the sky was almost painfully blue, but it was 30 degrees below zero and the snow was piled over six feet deep by the side of the road. As a consequence, we were the ONLY people at the South Kaibab station. We walked out to the edge of the canyon. I had seen the pictures of course, but I was utterly unprepared for the sight that greeted us. It quite literally took my breath away. We stood for a long time, just staring at the beauty, which seemed like it had been created just for the two of us.
3. A morning in 2005. The young wife and I went to Macchu Picchu in Peru. She was not feeling well, so I got up early and went to walk alone through the ruins as the sun rose. It was truly spectacular, with the greens of the jungle, the grey of the stones and the sharp morning shadows. As I was walking, I came across a young American couple. The young fellow asked me to take their picture with the ruins in the background. He showed me how to work their camera and I got prepared. As I was standing there, he whipped a ring out of his pocket and proposed to the young woman. She said yes, hugged him and cried. As I took their picture, I felt blessed to be there to see love flourish and a new family begin.
4. A morning in February 1973 - I was in the 8th grade. We lived in Middletown, Rhode Island. My mother let us stay home from school that day, because we heard the POW's from Vietnam were coming home. My dad, who was in the Navy, had been in Vietnam several times in the late 60's, and we had all been wearing bracelets with the names of POW's for several years. Mine had the name of Captain Jeremiah Denton. As we watched the TV, we saw pictures of a big Air Force plane setting down at Hickam Air Force base in Hawaii (I think, although it might have been Clark in the Phillipines). We watched as the door opened and the men came down the steps. They shook hands and saluted, and then their familes came runnning across the tarmac. Everyone in my house was crying to see these men who had suffered so long finally return home.
5. An afternoon in July 1969 -- I was 10 years old and we lived in Hawaii. Apollo 11 was about to land on the moon. We were at the neighbor's house, watching the TV intently and listening to the transmissions between Mission Control and the spacecraft. It seemed like endless reports of "two and a half down, thirty feet" punctuated by beeps. Finally, we heard the words "Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed." The whole room erupted in cheers and everyone ran outside, jumping up and down and cheering. I remember looking up and down the street and the same thing was happening in every house on the block -- people were going crazy on their front lawns. At that moment, I was so proud of this country. I believed that anything was possible and that the future was bright indeed.
That is my list.
Gumby
