Chapter 39

Given the emotional swings of the past couple of months, John 

decided he would spurge a little and take an island vacation for the Christmas holiday. He was still determined to see as much of this part of the world as possible, and he did some research as to the most welcoming and peaceful of the islands. In the end he decided on Raratonga.

It had been a long time since he had worn a Hawaiian shirt, and he had to dig deep into his closet to find something resembling beach wear. Still, he wanted to look the part, and he spent some time constructing an island wardrobe.

Touching down in Raro, he felt that old sense of awakening and

excitement that came with the exploration of a completely new place. He promptly rented a scooter at the airport, and cruising through town of Avarua he saw the low hanging lantern lights decorating the town. It was like driving into a dream.

He took one full rotation around the island on the scooter before settling into his hotel on the south side of the island. He followed the sound of island drums to a place called “rehab” close to the center of town, and pulled in. He was in the mood for some fun, but the irony of the name of the club also didn’t escape him.

Entering the club, he saw very few white faces, and took it as a

good sign. He’d never had much in common with the Izod shirt, fanny pack wearing tourist crowd, and was grateful for the real island experience.

He grabbed a bucket of Coronas with the intent of distributing

them, and that’s exactly what he did. He found a table of large island men and women and offered the beers up with no thought of return. He was in a charitable mood, and wanted to get a real feel for island life.

He quickly made friends with a number of large island men, who were quick to accept his offer of Coronas and accept him into the fold. He chuckled to himself observing they were all dressed in Chicago Bulls jerseys, as he felt like he was a lifetime removed from his Chicago days. Maybe it was life folding in on itself again.

Following some private discussion amongst the islanders, an attractive female cousin seemed to materialize out of nowhere, and John was introduced. He’d always heard about the concept of “island time,” but considering he’d been in the country for all of two hours, things seemed to be moving pretty fast.