One of the consequences of advancing years is the approach of the final year. As a result, one tends to look back over the preceding years ‘a la recherche du temps perdu’. Whether this is to find some key to what one’s life was about, like a “Rosebud” moment, or some validation of one’s existence, some noteworthy significance, something honourable or just plain nostalgia, it is difficult to say. Whatever the reason, one tends to reflect on the journey taken so far. There is indeed, more to come. How much, is another matter.
There is a tendency to review in the form of a memoire. A biography is too exacting, demanding much detail and in any event is just an attempt at a chronological order of memories. The memoire is not necessarily an accurate historical account, but can be a simple collection of events that have settled in the hippocampi and pop up as a result of some occurrence, or present stimulus, that sparks off the thought. A sort of involuntary retrieval system that acts at random. It can be pleasant or unpleasant as the case may be, but more often than not it is pleasurable experience.
As an example, I periodically receive an email from a French Estate Agent advising me of properties that may be of interest. This leads to my surfing round looking at various properties, location maps, satellite and street views, floor plans and the like. Of course there are adverts caused by ‘cookies’ which pop up alongside the various pages one peruses. On this occasion there was a link to a website for Accueil Des Villes Françaises which I clicked and was taken to:
Charles Nabet was the name of a school friend I was quite close to when I was at the Lycée in Montgeron, France in 1954/6. It was uncanny, but I was almost sure, from the smile, a certain look in the eye, that this was my old school friend I had not seen, spoken to, or heard from, in over 66 years. I took a chance and telephoned the number and asked to speak with Charles Nabet. I was told he was no longer president of the organisation and the receptionist was not sure how to get hold of him. I explained the possible connection and that I was calling from England. She managed to find an email address.. I emailed a copy of part of an old class photograph which he acknowledged. It turns out that it is indeed my old friend.
What is clear is that the hippocampi storage facility is quite uncanny. Despite the aging process, certain qualities on an individual’s face and eyes are sufficient to bring up a recall. They are so imprinted on the brain that no matter the passage of time, there is recognition. Of course the imprint can only happen through a close association, and there is no doubt that we were quite close at the time. I do hope that Charlie’s recollection is as fond as my own. And so we will meet in due course. There are certain memories that are very clear. Flashes of incidents that have been retained. Most of it is a bit hazy now, but snippets of crystal clarity.
So much is to do with the eyes. Un certain regard is that small stimulus which opens the flood gates. Perception is key. So much in life is down to perspective. What we look at, observe and take in, consciously or unconsciously as the case may be, is somehow engraved in the brain, creating an unforgettable image, sufficiently adaptable to allow for recognition and recall.
The last class photo from 1956 is a bit sharper:
Charlie is in the front - middle, arms folded, sitting on the ground. I am in the third row or first row standing, 2nd from the left.
That picture was taken in the new year of 1956. In the September of that year I started at Beverly Hills High School and met some more amazing people. On discussion with Celia, she attended 7 different schools between 1944 and 1961 and I attended 10 different schools between 1942 and 1959.
The young man who is sixth from the right in that first standing row is Gaël de la Porte Du Theil – great name- who is now President of the International Tourism Group. There is a rather long lecture he gives on You Tube from June of 2013. It is rather long and I would not advise watching all of it, but it is part of the stuff that makes up the extraordinary mix of the lives of the people in our past. With so many connections, what on earth is there to fight about?
Gaël gives an interesting view of the reasons people travel and where to. The Chinese he says are not easy customers. In any event it’s a view and a take on the movement of people as tourists throughout the world; the holiday makers, travellers and amateur explorers as opposed to refugees. What kind of tourism do you want? What is the DNA of your tourism? How do you change the image of your country? How would you attract tourists back to Libya? International Tourism is clearly very much connected with international politics. So again, what is there to fight about?.
One can
indeed ask “What are you waiting for to change the world?” So many people in
our lives, doing so much stuff. It’s exhausting.
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