This is a recurring series called Wish I/Glad I. Here’s how it works: Every week I will throw out a theme and will either answer something I’m glad I did in regards to the theme or something I wish I did in regards to the theme. In some cases I will give examples of both. Then, you answer for yourself in the comments section.
This week’s “Wish I/Glad I” theme is: A Trip I’m Glad I Took
List in the comments section a trip you are glad you took and/or one you wish you took. I’ll start:
I’m glad I met up with my grandmother in Newport, Rhode Island in 2001
One of the things I will always remember is the time my wife and I met my grandmother and some of her friends in Newport, Rhode Island. The year was 2001 and my wife and I were recently married, working, no kids, and living about 20 miles outside Boston, Massachusetts. My grandmother or “Po Po” as I called her, called me on the phone at work and told me that she was in Newport, Rhode Island for the night. Now, my wife and I love Newport but the idea of getting home from a long day at work, getting into a car, and driving for at least 2 hours was not high on our list. But my Po Po lived in Hawaii and I rarely got a chance to see her so we made the commitment to drive down.
It was a rainy, traffic-jam filled drive to Newport and it wasn’t until almost 8:30 when we finally arrived but it was the most meaningful things I have ever done in my life. The reason is that it was the first time I interacted with my Po Po as an adult. I was married. Had a job. Had aspirations of starting a family. Of buying a house. She was later in her years, enjoying her life with her friends.
We met up at one of our favorite restaurants: The Brick Alley Pub and talked and ate for hours. We laughed at each other’s stories and ask about our lives. I remember her telling us that when she was first learning English she would confuse the words “kitchen” and “chicken” which when you sit back and think about it could be very confusing for someone. She then added that when she learned to say her name in English, she would sometimes say her name was “elephant” instead of “Evelyn”—a story that I think about quite often as we named our first born “Evelyn” after her.
I remember not caring that it was quite late and we had a long drive home. I knew at that moment that it was special. It would be the last time I would see her healthy. She died a couple of years later.
I sometimes wonder what I would have missed if I told my Po Po that I was too busy to drive down to meet her. If I simply didn’t answer that phone call. I’m so glad I did.
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Gregory Ng
GOAL: Visit 100 National Parks as a family by 2020. Favorite Parks: Zion National Park, Mt Rainier National Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park
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