Exploring Paradise

    I don't mean to discount any of the other places I’ve written about, or traveled to, or read about or imagined in my wildest dreams, but this island’s somethin’! 

Betsy and I decided to leave the boat tied up and explore this place on foot. We walked 4 miles up the road and came in contact with two cars. The one going the same direction as us stopped and apologized for not giving us a ride, but he was only going to the next driveway. 

Betsy was determined to find the island’s cemetery. It sounded like a good enough reason to traipse around so we headed for "Boat Cove" where Peter said we’d find it. Well we didn’t find it, but what we did find was a place that is as good as humanity gets. 

We had a picnic on the beach and watched the waves roll in. We explored caves and found sand dollars on the beach. We happened upon a set of old wagon wheels. Just looking at the size and at how much energy it took to make them was astounding. 

And these could still be used. They were built to last. It just makes sense. There is no electricity on the island. No car ferry. Not much of a connection to the outside world. All resources are used efficiently. Everything is recycled. And I don’t mean just recycling aluminum cans back to the factory. I mean re-using everything until there’s nothing left to use, then make art out of it. I overheard a conversation about how old Mel has an old inter tube at his place and if we need a new gasket for the hot water tank, we might be able to use some of it. People here use solar power in the summer and wind generators in the winter. Why don’t we all? Just like Adventuress, just like our planet…we are dealing with limited resources, limited fresh pure water, limited fuel, limited space. I always knew we had the technology to live this way to really sustain ourselves without killing the planet. I just never thought there was a whole community actually doing it. 

I lie in bed and think of ways to make solar hot water heaters for when I have a house someday. And I have even drawn designs of ways to make electricity from the rise and fall of the tides. And here I am in a place that is actually living and thriving that way. I feel like I really came home. This is how I want to live. This is the only way to stop the destruction of the planet. This place tugs at my core being.

This place is who I am.

How ironic, that I just last week proposed to a woman who cannot live without running water, flush toilets, hot showers and some of the other "necessities" that western society has to sustain. There are whole other cultures being pushed further and further into poverty. Everyone in the world can’t be rich. But we can all be happy and healthy. I guess that is not news to anyone. We just play the hand that we’re dealt. I guess it is all about compromise. And although life’s journey took me to this place for a reason, it also brought me to her for a reason. And she is one necessity I will never give up.

We returned to the boat exhausted from our excursion. We had some supper then went ashore again to see the sunset and found yet another magical place. Just on the other side of the bay there was another cove with a tree swing overlooking the sea. I could barely get Betsy off of it. Then we heard voices and made our way to Miguel’s place. He and Brooney were sitting around the fire laughing and singing. Miguel lives here in the summer and works at a cantina on the beach in Mexico all winter. He is a graduate of M.I.T. and he had tenure at a college in Boston as a professor of engineering. He found himself in Mexico recovering from chemotherapy and just needing to heal. He decided to stay and had his daughter get rid of his things. The next spring, he walked from Puerto Escondido to the United States then got on a train, then found himself on this island. That was three years ago. We thanked him for his stories and for the hot cocoa with marshmallows--truly a luxury in such a place. And he said, if you ever happen to come across Player’s Blend special cut tobacco, I would sure appreciate it. That night I lay in bed wondering.

Frank

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