A Journey of Hope and Significance

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ZeCarlos

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Friday: 7th of October, 2011
Gatwick Airport
​

Jason Mann - just an insignificant name on a normal day to most such is the obsession with fashion, music and money. Little do people care about others' backstories and up bringing's. I looked across the cafe seating and seen a seated man - middle class, suited up like a stereotypical lawyer of sorts. I guessed he was off to Zurich, Milan or Munich; somewhere profitable - business like.

In another corner sat an elderly sobbing woman. I approached slowly in hope of finding out the problem. As I reached her, two or three photos laid across the table became visible - photos of an elderly man - a former husband, I guessed. I took the seat opposite - sharing the table with her:

"Is everything okay?" I asked as her rosy eyes met mine,

"Yes, yes I'm fine," she chuckled - wiping away her tears, "Benjamin was his name. He died last month of lung cancer - he was a fighter but his time had come. I'm travelling to The Hague to spend some time with our son and hopefully find somewhere special to lay his ashes,"

"I'm so sorry to hear of your loss," offering my hand in support,

"No, no, don't be sorry - we all get old," she replied, holding my hand across the out-laid pictures, "my name is Lucinda. It's nice to meet you..." she questioned,

"Jason - Jason Mann," I replied with a short smile,

"It's nice to meet you Jason. Very kind of you to approach an old lady sobbing - the rest of humanity would let time go by and ignore me - other things are far too important nowadays," she looked me in the eye,

"Oh, no, it's not a bother Lucinda. Everybody needs somebody," she chuckled,

"Well, I appreciate you sitting with me, Jason. I'd like to spend some time searching the shops alone - remembering Benny," she folded the pictures back up and put them in her pocket and smiled,

"It's nice meeting you - I hope you're happy remembering the times he and yourself spent together. I'll see you around." I smiled back at her before she headed off into the shopping area.​

I checked my watch - 17:10. My flight was due to depart in forty minutes. I was also off to Den Haag - or The Hague - in hope of impressing Mark van de Kallen - chairman of the struggling football club there. Long had I served as Academy Manager to giants Arsenal but now, well, this was my time. I stared out over the busy airport - the sun setting in the distance as a British Airways flight prepared for departure. I took a sip of my coffee and hoped the journey ahead was a significant step to take in my forever changing life.
 
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Apologies for all the question marks - they seem to have replaced most of all the other punctuation I used so hopefully you'll bare with me - I have a feeling it's the site but I'm not 100% sure.
 
was wondering about the question marks lol very good start though i'll keep checking in when i can well done.
 
AldoKemp-1 said:
was wondering about the question marks lol very good start though i'll keep checking in when i can well done.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I think it's happening everywhere haha - well, I hope so! And thanks - appreciate the comment :)
 
Its the site mate dw, great start
 
the punctuation is all across the site mate, good start I enjoyed the brighton story btw, why'd u stop it?
 
likeabaws said:
the punctuation is all across the site mate, good start I enjoyed the brighton story btw, why'd u stop it?
Click to expand...

Yeah, thanks for letting me know. And I had to stop my Brighton save as I got a virus and installed new windows - I'm hoping to try do this story from a personal perspective though. Hope you'll still enjoy it - and thanks for the comment. :)
 
CantGetEnoughOfJelavic said:
Loved your previous story(s). Looking forward to this one.
Click to expand...

Thanks man. :)

Edit: Just to let you guys know, I think I've fixed the problem I was having with the punctuation. Not sure if the site has been fixed or not - I just edited the post and inserted all the initial punctuation. Hope it's better now.
 
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Friday: 7th of October 2011 (Continued)
Somewhere in the air over the English Channel​

I boarded the plane and walked along the isle in search of my seat - 23B. After helping an elderly man store his hand luggage in the storage above, I finally found where I'd be sat for the short flight to Rotterdam Airport. I took my seat - next to a man similar of my age wearing a suit.

As we took off and ascended into the distance, I looked out over the lights of London which illuminated the dark skies. Before long, air hostesses were on their usual duties around the plane of offering drinks and small snacks to passengers. I headed to the toilet and after a short wait, entered. As I turned I caught a sight of myself in the mirror and stopped - staring back into my own eyes. Memories - bad and good - came flowing back. It wasn't long before I began considering whether what I was doing was right at my age. A 23-year-old professional football manager - aren't I a little young?

Memories of my family - long in the past - began to fill my mind... memories of my mother; a strong woman - brave and courageous. As a child, I never met my father as he left my mother before my birth. She brought me up unaided and it took its toll - we were never fortunate enough to be classed as rich. At the age of 33 - when I was 11 - she suffered a fatal heart attack. There's no doubt that I still think about her every day and I questioned whether she'd be proud of what I was doing. Despite being in constant debt, she taught me valuable lessons of life. I appreciated just about everything and she told me to never judge anybody by just what we see - or as the saying goes: "Don't judge a book by its cover".

I was rudely awoken from my day dream by a bang on the door and a soft female voice: "Excuse me, Sir. Are you okay? You've been in there a while,"

"Yes, yes I'm fine thanks. I'll be out in a second." I replied.​

I quickly opened the door and headed back to my seat - in doing so I noticed a young female; a recognizable face. I struggled to put the face to a name and took a seat - wondering who it was. I searched through my memories - College? University? - and quickly remembered: School. Her name was Evelyn - she was half Dutch and half English which probably explained why she was on a flight to Holland. If I remember correctly, her Dutch relatives lived in The Hague. Luckily, she was only seated two rows behind so I wouldn't be causing too much of a fuss by approaching her. I stood up and slowly turned to walk in her direction - my eyes meeting hers as she instantly recognized my face:

"Jason! How are you?" she asked enthusiastically,

"I'm doing alright, Evelyn - thanks. How are you?" I asked as I stood at the end of her row,

"Yes, yes I'm doing great. Here..." she said - taking a magazine off of the seat next to her, "take a seat - it's empty," I took a seat, "so what are you up too? Heading over to my homeland, I see?" she questioned before chuckling,

"Uh, yeah - I'm heading over there for a job offer I've received - you seeing family?" I smiled,

"Oh, that's great - what are you doing these days? It must be five or so years since I saw you! And yeah, I'm off to see my relatives - I spend half of the year there nowadays so I'm going home - if that's what you'd like to call it," she replied,

"Well, uhm, I'm interested in football still and I've been offered a position at ADO Den Haag," she interrupted,

"Oh, that's great to hear! Are you interested, then?" she asked with a smile,

"Well, I'm 50-50 if I'm honest. I'm not entirely sold - I mean it's a new country - a new lifestyle - but maybe I want something new? I'm not really sure," I responded,

"Well I'm sure you'll love it once you're there! It's a lovely city! Maybe I'll show you around some time?" she smiled before ordering a drink from the air hostess.​

We sat and discussed what had happened in our own lives for the remaining time of the flight - where we'd been, what we'd done and who we'd met. She was still into Art - like she always had been - and enjoyed visiting museums and such. She was always more middle class than the rest of us at school - but I'd always had a soft spot for her... she was much more humble and genuine compared to most middle class people. As our flight landed in darkness, we parted ways after she'd given me her details if I needed somebody to speak too.
 
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