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Colorado 2012 I met Will last June in a Ghost Town not far from Breckenridge. I heard him laughing when I stooped down to take a photo of a cat... with my lens cap on.
We chatted a while about the amazing ghost town museum where he worked. "Did you notice there are no Do Not Touch! signs?" He asked. He took such pride in all the ways the museum staff worked to make visitors feel welcome when they explored. 2 Days Earlier My husband and I found the refurbished ghost town while exploring the town of Fairplay a few days before.  That first day, we didn't have time to tour the old town, but we peeked down the Main Street, with the wooden walks and colorful storefronts. Hard Work My eyes were drawn to the man wearing suspenders, rumbling his wheelbarrow down the planks of the walkway.  He was not exactly a young man, but there was something energetic and positive about the way he moved. I had a feeling this man was very content with whatever job he was involved in. The Cat This is the cat I took a picture of, when we returned, 2 days later. Don and I took our time wandering around the intriguing museum. We had all the quaint barns, shops and houses to ourselves, on a beautiful crisp morning.  We wandered in and out of an old saloon, explored the inside of a caboose, sighed at the sweet old desks and dunce stool, in a red school house. Everywhere we went, our cat friend followed us and amused us. We were at the end of our visit when I insisted Don pose with our friend. That's when I heard Will chuckle. A Little Sharing For many minutes we chatted with Will and learned how an 80 year old man, (who retired in Pennsylvania) ended up becoming a maintenance man at a ghost town in Colorado. You could tell Will was far too educated and skilled to be doing this kind of labor at any age.
He moved to Fairplay eager to volunteer with the museum, but ended up being offered a job. He chuckled, "I told them I was too old for that, but I offered to work until they found someone. That was 5 years ago!" A Little Help When I mentioned something about the hard work, Will admitted he had some help. "I've got a young helper." He explained. "He's pretty much my legs!" Don and I had noticed a cheery pre-teen, wandering around earlier, carrying an electric drill. There was something delightfully eager about this boy, when he answered a question. He answered us with grin and a country twang, that reminded us of the young Forest Gump.
Will explained that he was a local boy, he'd gotten to know a couple years ago. Will worried when his mother had difficulty caring for him and moved away. "I arranged with his mom to have him come live with me in the summers. So now, he gets a chance to work with me and learn some skills. We're a good team."
Thanks Will! First you delighted me with your positive outlook. I don't often bump into people who seem to be so content with their life. But after seeing that young boy whistling down the same plank walkway, where I had seen you the first day, I knew you had the ability to help others become content! There need to be more mentors in the world like you!
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FIFTY-FIVE
STRANGERS To celebrate my birthday in April 2012, I decided to reflect on the past with a different kind of list. I've met a lot of people in my 55 years, but I'm going to stop and remind myself about the strangers I've met. These are people I met by accident, not through friends or work. For some reason, these strangers dropped into my life. Even though we may have only spent a few minutes together, these people have never been forgotten. Each week, I'll spotlight someone I met in the past, who in some small way, made me stop and think. MY GOAL: Remember 55 Strangers Archives
September 2024
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