Few people understand as well as my friend Marjorie that life is the adventure you make it. Not in an aggressive, carpe diem, “shall we go to Borneo?” way, but in the genuine, inject a bit of madcap into your average Saturday way.
I wasn’t a bit surprised a week ago, talking about what we could bring for Thanksgiving, to learn that a surprise guest would be joining the gathering of orphans and misfits that has become holiday tradition on our block. How she connected with him after hearing an interview on NPR is her tale to tell and not mine, but the gift of his presence is too much not to share as we head into the season during which it’s easy to lose your bearings.
Imagine yourself at a table full of strangers to whom you are a curiosity shop novelty. Your celebrity stems from your leaving corporate life behind for a few months in order to kayak down the Mississippi River. “What’s your route?” “How did you decide to do this?” “What do your parents think?” Daniel, Marjorie’s guest, couldn’t have been more gracious despite the barrage of questions. Thanks to his gentle humor, in a short while the group fell into the ease of extended family, familiar enough to swap personal tales but formal enough to respect the boundary that protects comfortable conversation.
We learned, among many things, that LibriVox has an excellent, and free, audio rendition of “Life on the Mississippi.” We explored the embarrassment of riches that is chocolate-covered bacon. We tested our hands at inventing a narrative through text messaging and laughed until we cried.
As our table lingering was about to come to an end, I asked Daniel what was the best part of his adventures. “You know,” he said, pausing for a moment, “people are good. Down deep inside, despite all our differences, they’re just… really good.”
Indeed.
Jenny's Lark 
7 responses to “People are good.”
I’m thankful that we are lucky enough to know the very good Balink family,each and every one of them!
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And we are thankful for our very good neighbors!
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best. thanksgiving. ever. how are we going to top it next year?
Thank you for the kind words.
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Maybe we should go to Borneo! It will always be great, if always with you.
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[…] Here’s what it was like from the other side: https://jennyslark.com/2012/11/25/people-are-good/ […]
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Jenny: I am Daniel’s dad. Your blog was a beautiful read. Many thanks for sharing your Thanksgiving with my son and sharing your experience with all of us. It is wonderful to tap into that “goodness” in all of us. It is an endless source if we let it. Again, many, many thanks (chocolate-covered bacon??) and visit us in Tallahassee…..
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Thank you, Carlos, for your kind words and for raising such a wonderful son. Goodness will always follow him because it was obviously nurtured in him by you. You are likewise welcome here any time. We can swap pig roasting recipes, as I understand you don’t play when it comes to pig either! May your new year be warm and bright.
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