POST # 482
For the second time in less than a week, I encountered what I would like to call a magic wall. This magic wall can be found on any BC ferry. Yesterday, on my return journey to the mainland, I boarded the ferry in Nanaimo, en route to West Vancouver. I had just completed a very short sit with two of my four legged furry friends, Eunice and Apollo.
I think that they both look a little sad knowing that I will be leaving soon, but perhaps I'll be back again sometime in the future. Or maybe they look this way because I haven't fed them their breakfast yet.
OK, now back to the magic wall onboard the ferry. A picture is worth a thousand words, so they say, so here is what the magic wall looks like.
On this side of the magic wall, the air is fresh and clean, and the people above can go about their normal business of eating and drinking, and socialising with one another. But beware, on the other side of the magic wall as seen below, no telling what might be floating around in the air. Everyone on that side must be sure to wear a mask.
It's truly amazing to me that whatever is floating around in the air is powerless to cross over this magic wall. I was content to spend the entire crossing on the unmasked side of the magic wall, and during that time I enjoyed a conversation with a fellow traveller. That was pleasant, and very rare these days, as most of us have our heads in front of some kind of electronic device much of the time. Having had the opportunity to engage with a fellow human being, took me back to the days when on a long haul flight, you got to know the person sitting next to you. Those days are long gone.
As we pulled in to Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal, I finally had to leave the safety of the magic wall, and like all of my fellow passengers, I was forced to put a mask over my face in order to depart and leave the ferry terminal. Even in the brisk fresh air of a December morning, the mask had to be in place until I was completely away from the terminal.
If you've read this far, you'll probably have worked out that I am not a very big fan of the masked world that we currently live in. Perhaps if they were effective at doing whatever it is that they are suppose to be doing, I may be more accepting of them. Here is a link from an expert who gives his view on the efficacy of masks.
They appear to me to be more about social control than anything else.
Still, this is the world that we all live in at the moment, and I suppose I could spend the entire remainder of my life complaining about one thing or another, but then all I have to do is think about what my friend Guy pointed out to me years ago, and it puts all of this in perspective. And what was that, you say? He pointed out the obvious. That being, that there was never any guarantee at all that I would have ever been born. That goes the same for every human on the planet. It seems rather obvious, but until he pointed it out to me, I never gave it a thought. The advantage to now knowing that fact, is that it allows me to "roll with the punches" as it were. Good or bad, at least I get to be here, and take it all in. For that, I am grateful beyond words.
So whether it's magic walls, or masks, I'll continue to live each day as it presents itself, and try to get the most out of each and every one of them.
grateful for every breath,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
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