We'll Always Have England

We'll Always Have England

By: Zola

Chief Dieter

Plan Z Diet

They were like kids in the back seat of the car on a summer vacation. I almost expected to hear “How many more driveways ‘til we get there?”

Some days the drives were quite long; up to 4 hours. The “kids” in the backseat were my in-laws, Jack and Sally. It was a trip I will never forget, and for all the right reasons.

My husband and I used to travel to Great Britain quite regularly for business; usually twice a year and once even three times. Each time we stayed at least two weeks, visiting our clients in several cities and conducting sales training seminars for their staffs and clients.

On this particular trip we invited Jack and Sally along. Sally had been to London once but Jack had never been out of the US except for his military duty on a war ship off of the coast of China during WWII. This trip was a big deal to them. It was pretty much routine for us except that they were along.

We tried to do some special things for them on the trip but mostly they just tagged along as we did our business. They made themselves busy during the day and most afternoons we had to drive to the next city and check into the next hotel. On the weekends we could venture out a bit more. In-between city visits there were a few times we had a day or two off so we could spend more time together.

My routine was to get up early and deal with my business back in the states. I had to answer faxes that had come through in order to run our company. (There was no email at that point in history.) Then I scoured my tour books and local brochures to come up with suggestions for how they could spend their day. They were very good at taking some of the suggestions and venturing out of the hotel. Other times they just read while we got our work done.

One of the days we were there was Jack’s birthday. We took them to a special restaurant and he got the autograph of the chef. Another evening we went to a play and ate dinner after. That meant dinner at after midnight for two folks in their 70’s. Highly unusual. They did just fine and stayed perky throughout the evening.

We visited cities and hamlets. You name it we either toured it or drove through it.

One weekend we found ourselves on the south coast. My husband and I decided to treat them to something we thought they would find special. And special it turned out to be. We decided to find our way down to the beach so they could look back at the White Cliffs of Dover. Those cliffs mean so much to those involved in WWII and are now listed as a national landmark and icon of Britain.

It took me quite some time to figure out how to navigate a route that would take us down to the beach. It wasn’t clear on the map, that’s for sure. We found parking and got out of the car. This was the only time the entire trip that Sally and Jack ventured off when we were with them. They always hung close to us, but not on this day. Without saying a word they joined hands and strolled off down the beach. They didn’t say “goodbye,” didn’t say “we’ll be back in a minute.” They just went off on their own for some quiet time together. It was one of the few times I saw them holding hands. It was a rare and special moment to watch them strolling along a quiet and peaceful beach, holding hands, looking up at the cliffs and just standing together, as a couple, on the beach. I never asked them what they spoke of while they walked or what thoughts filled their heads. It was more of a meditative moment for them, and one of those times couples share without intrusion. I’ll never forget seeing their silhouette in the distance as the sun waned.

On another occasion we met up in London with one of our dear friends and clients named Julian. Julian made a special trip into the city to take Jack and Sally on a very special adventure while Chris and I conducted our business of the day.

Julian had connections. Julian has connections to seemingly everything special. Julian had arranged for Jack and Sally to tour Parliament. This was no public tour. This was a private tour of the inner “sanctums” of Parliament and also to meet up with a Member of Parliament who was Julian’s friend. Talk about jealous. That could have been my middle name that day.

Julian arranged even more. He arranged for them to have lunch in the private dining room at Parliament. I’ll never forget his generosity and I’ll never lose touch of the chattering voices coming from Jack and Sally after their special day. Funny, too, was Sally’s tipsy behavior when she returned. Not much of a drinker, Sally had a bit of special sherry while there and was as chatty as ever for a good chunk of the afternoon. It was really cute. It was a memory to be captured and held close for a lifetime.

As we ventured along we gathered memorabilia. We kept that autographed menu. We kept the theatre ticket stubs. We kept brochures and stubs from museums, landmarks and anything else we thought would capture the memories. When we returned home my husband and I had all of those bits put into a collage and framed. That picture hangs in Jack and Sally’s house.

Sadly, my husband and I will be traveling to Ohio in the not too distant future to pick up that framed collage. Sally passed away this past December 23rd after a short illness. She was 88 years old. (Jack had passed away a few years before).

I have to profess that I had the best in-laws any woman could ask for. They were bright and generous folks. They gave me an example of a loving couple to emulate as I pass into the decades of marriage I hope to have ahead of me. They were loved in their community and by their family. They were funny. They stayed bright and downright hip in their elder years. Sally was emailing and reading on her Kindle even in her last days.

I had the privilege of taking a picture of Jack and Sally on their 50th wedding anniversary. It’s definitely my favorite picture of them. The trip to England was their 50th wedding anniversary gift from us. I’ll also forever hold dear my mind’s picture of them strolling the beach under the White Cliffs of Dover.

With Jack and Sally we’ll always have England.

To read more of Zola's blogs CLICK HERE or head over to https://www.planzdiet.com/blog/