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Some days good messages come across my computer screen. Recently, my sister wrote to me asking, “Would you like to come to Alaska for September?” Yes, I consider that a very good message indeed.
My sister and her husband run a fishing lodge near King Salmon, Alaska. If you ever see photos of bears fishing for salmon in a waterfall in Alaska, it is most likely at Katmai National Park. That’s a brief boat trip from my sister’s place. So, it is wonderful to head to Alaska to see the bears. It’s a conversation killer with all her guests when I tell them I did not come to the lodge to fish. And, it’s just wonderful to spend time with my sister.
On this trip, I would not just be visiting. I joined the kitchen crew. She’d lost some of her staff and needed another body in the kitchen. Currently, there are four of us in the kitchen. One of my friends asked me if I like preparing the food. There is none of that kind of nonsense on my part. Nobody wants to eat my cooking. I manage to dollop some rice or mashed potatoes when needed. In a pinch, I can serve food. But, usually, I find myself nothing more than a glorified busboy, way too old to be called a boy.
As far as the four in the kitchen go, I’ve blogged about my sister in the past. Amanda had the best bear story I’ve ever heard in Alaska. I write about myself just too much. And then, there is Chef Josh.
There are four guys named Josh at camp. Big Josh, LBJ (Little Baby Josh), Shua (short for Joshua), and Chef Josh. I kinda liked Chefshua, but I have to stick with what he goes by, Josh or Chef.
Anyway, the four of us in the kitchen get along so very well. It’s fun to scrape slop, clean clutter, and maintain a kitchen when the crew is so friendly. Chef is new to the fishing lodge this year. He’s said that he’s never worked in an environment that was so much like a family before. I blame that on my sister. She’s the heart and soul of the place. And, guests and staff return year after year because they are so welcomed.
Josh has not traveled nearly as much as me. He’s hardly ever left New England! But, he had a few stories to rival any of my (mis)adventures. I rarely ever happen upon people that can do that. Chef has success in the kitchen as well as with his stories.
I don’t remember the name of the other lodge somewhere further into the wilderness, but Chef worked at another location in the past. One of his best – or worst – stories happened in his own cabin. Staff members generally have to share a cabin with another employee. When Chef walked into his cabin, his roomie sat on the bed with his revolver, spinning the cylinder that held the bullets. It’s neither a sight nor a sound that you want from somebody who will share your sleeping accommodations. Imagine what he could do to you if you snore? And, I do!
Chef did what any sane person would do. He gathered up all of the guy’s bullets and headed off to have a talk with his employer. The new boss wasn’t quite as supportive as you would hope for. He said, “You can’t take the guy’s bullets away! He has a second amendment right to own them.”
Well, Chef had a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. All three were threatened by this guy possessing bullets for the revolver. The rooming situation didn’t last the whole season. The roommate that nobody would want to have went home to the ex-girlfriend who felt the same way about him. He ended up shooting her, as well as the new boyfriend, before setting the house on fire. A national manhunt took place to finally put this guy behind bars where he belonged.
Like I said, I have no stories to match this one.
Chef’s other tale was a whole lot more humbling. He went on a mission trip to central Mexico. As a part of the experience, the group went to Axtla, a remote village way up in the mountains. It’s one thing to live in a remote village. It’s a whole other experience to live in the countryside near a remote village in the mountains. Chef came upon a man living in a home he created from cardboard boxes. There were four walls and no ceiling.
If you lived in a cardboard home with no ceiling, you can almost imagine what little you’d own inside your home. It would be little more than the clothes on your back. But, when Chef visited with this wonderful human being at his cardboard home, the man started to remove his shirt. He was literally going to give his guest the shirt off his back!
Of course, Chef had to ask what was going on. Why was this man doing this?
The answer was simple. The man said, “I can see that you are not used to the sunshine here. Your skin is burning. You need to cover it.”
I’ve met wonderful people as I’ve traveled the world. I have been cared for and supported by people from so many countries and cultures. But, I’ve never been offered the shirt off of someone’s back. Of course, Chef didn’t accept the shirt. But, I think his heart was forever humbled and changed by the kindness of this stranger.
I think we all need to try a little more kindness with everyone we meet, either friend, family, or stranger. This wonderful human in remote Mexico is an example for us all. Gracias.