My Companion, fellow traveler, Gladice

So I feel it necessary to write a paragraph about how this trip happened. I am traveling w/ Gladice, my ex-boyfriends mother, who is 80 years old in September. If she won the lotto, she'd be happy to live in airports and travel to the next new place. WHY many people have asked? Cause Gladice rocks and she has 'fire in her belly' as she often talks about young kids these days not having. She has a desire to see the world in her time left on the planet. I'm the lucky one. She picked me to travel with. And being a travel whore, why not her, and why not me. This trip is for her. Make no mistake, on day three, I'm learning it's about me and how much I have to learn, think about, contemplate. I have a huge problem with this aging process, I'm not sure who doesn't after 40-something. I am reminded now daily of many things:

Gladice has patience. She is a lesson in life, age, wisdom, courage, fire and a desire to see history, see how other people live, to participate in their life, as an observer and suck the life out of life. She takes things in stride, she rests when she needs to, she is very happy to sit at the local establishment and watch life in the present and observe. (meanwhile drinking cafe au laits and smoking cigs.) And at almost 80, i'm not one to get on her ass about smoking. I feel so privileged to be here with her and experience this. (and yes, i've already bummed a few american spirits off her..sorry mom). It is with gratitude to her sons, Rob, Stephen, Scott that have trusted me to be with her and more to Rob for making this all possible. I want her to have the trip of a lifetime and can't even begin to think about how it changes me too in the interim. She is a trooper. And a classic example of having fire in the belly. We still have much more to do in Paris, then on to St. Petersburg, then Madrid. There is so much we have to learn from our parents, from older people....make the time. We only get one life. I think it's an obligation to live it fully, without fear and take what we learn and pass it on.