My grandfather was a merchant marine who sailed around the world seven times. He also fathered seven children. He was also a drunk. I've often wondered if he had other children in other ports. I'm thinking about him this morning because we are stuck in Chetumal waiting for jeep repairs. We will probably be here a week. Being port bound is part of life for sailors. Many have stayed months or years waiting for ship repairs. Many children were born in the interim. I've always suspected we have an unknown cousin or two somewhere in the world.
When we were buying the tent for the top of our jeep we met a guy named Frenchie La Chance. He had a built up Cherokee like ours and was an off-road adventure guide. On the side he worked with the only guy in the States who imported the tent we wanted. Frenchie´s rig acted as the demo. I was surprised when he told us his last name. Other than my own family, I have never met another Chance. Frenchie actually looked like family, especially his eyes ... too deep, too dark, remotely disturbing. The bone structure of the his face also had the Chance look plus he was nervous, restless, twitchy ... typical Chance mannerisms. So I mentioned, mostly kidding, that perhaps we were related. The mention of his family instantly irritated him. He didn't want to talk about them. He said they were a bad bunch he wanted nothing to do with. That made me wonder all the more if perhaps we actually were related. The Chance family is a bit odd and difficult at times and who knows what adventures and mishaps dear old granddad had on his seven voyages? If Frenchie is a part of our family his aversion may be quite reasonable.
Here´s the thing about us. We call it The Gene. We joke about it but we all know what it means. It´s the Odd Factor, the Frenzy, the corkscrew twist we all share. It makes us interesting but at a price. Then in each generation, it seems one child is the double winner. It was Uncle John in his generation. He thought himself to death. Not a good way to go. I am the "black sheep" in my family but so far, so good. There have been some close calls but It hasn´t gotten me yet. And along the way, I´ve learned to call any day I stay ahead of the bullet a good day. Sweet and simple. Plus I like to think the damn thing ends with me. I have come to believe that it´s entirely possible to be an artist or any other form of creative, conscious individual without self-destructing in the process.
Language itself is a barrier.
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