Majestic View

While living in the city, I enjoyed daily walks through my neighborhood. Just blocks from my home was a beautiful park called Majestic View; aptly named due to the glorious view of the Rocky Mountain range that runs through the state. The park was also host to a mini ‘botanic garden’ surrounded by acres of wildlife preserve. An oasis in the heart of a giant metropolis, the sky is big there and the sunsets are always gorgeous. And the glories of this nature walk seemed to draw out many of my neighbors too, as over time I slowly began to recognize their faces, and their dogs!

There was the woman with the giant white Mastiff that pulled her around like a Raggedy Ann doll. As I saw it, he took her for daily walks! The huge dog had an energy that was a bit too intense for my comfort but I never had to worry about that, for as soon as she saw me, she would make her way to the other side of the street. She always did that. This woman, I noticed, was one of the few who never looked up but instead always kept her eyes to the ground, refusing to making eye contact with anyone. It seemed to me that her dog was used as a sort of buffer between she and the world. Kinda sad, I thought for a while after I realized that we would never exchange smiles. “I’ll just send her blessings from afar,” I finally settled for our daily passing relationship on her terms.

Another of my neighbors was the older gentleman who always wore darkened sunglasses while walking his two tiny Yorkies; it always made me giggle to see them following with their bouncy little steps.

And always, I could count on seeing the elderly woman who donned the big straw hat and carried a massive walking stick! Never having seen her use the stick for walking, I suspected that she carried it as a weapon instead. She impressed me, still walking the hilly neighborhood even at her advanced age. And because of this, I always laughed to myself imagining a woman of such small stature trying to beat on anyone with a stick that much larger than her! “Hello!” we smiled openly as we came nearer to one another one day. “Have you seen my new wall?” she stopped and asked out of nowhere. Happily surprised, this was the first time she’d ever said more than ‘hello.’ I searched my mind at her question and realized that yes, I had seen a new decorative wall go up in the neighborhood and I told her how attractive it was, all lined with rose bushes. “You noticed?” her face lit up. And having stood talking for a good spell, when we did finally part ways I chuckled, “I was right! That’s no ordinary walking stick!” She revealed that once, one of her small dogs was attacked by a larger dog and since then, she’s ready to “…beat down anyone who gets near my baby!” And after our talk I could attest that she did indeed have the gusto to do it too!

And then there was Paul. I knew this neighbor’s name because Paul made sure that everyone knew his name. And after our first meeting, I always looked forward to seeing him.  “Hi there, my name is Paul,” he easily approached the first time we met, quickly matching my stride. And before I could return his greeting he continued, “goin’ on a walk to the park, eh? Mind if I join you?” But it was clear that he would be joining me whether I minded or not. But I didn’t mind and with a smile, I silently opened my arms toward our destination. Paul, looking too much like Robin Williams to ignore and possessing the light-hearted energy that one would expect a Robin Williams look-alike to have, commenced with his unsolicited story. “I have a brain injury from a car accident many years ago,” his blunt honesty caught me a bit off guard. But no need to worry about any awkward obligatory response with Paul ’cause he just keeps right on going, undaunted.
“It was 1974, probably before you were even born!” he smiled wide. “It was in my Beetle Bug car and I was with my ex-girlfriend, Natalie.” I could tell that the name of this woman from long ago caused him to travel back in time for just a moment as he stared into the blue sky and whispered her name again before snapping back to the present.
Shaking his head to dissipate the memory he smiled and continued. “Doctors said I wouldn’t make it, ya know…that it was a miracle that I survived! I was in a coma for three months and when I woke I had to relearn everything! How to walk, how to talk, how to write…everything!” he happily bobbed along side me. He suddenly stopped and looked at me seriously. “What did you say your name was?” he asked, seeming a bit confused. I smiled and told him, unwilling to break the news that he hadn’t asked until just now. “Ah,” he smiled wide, “beautiful name for a beautiful lady. Well beautiful lady, d’ya mind if I continue with you on your walk?” “I’d be happy if you did Paul,” I answered as we walked a few more feet and were both naturally inclined to sit at a bench beside the path. “Sure is pretty here,” he began again. “Sure is,” I agreed as we both gazed at the golden-glowing mist that appeared just as the sun was about to set over the mountains. “You know, ever since my accident I’ve realized something…this is what life is all about. Beauty!” He turned to look at me and although I appreciate human connection and openness, his unabashed eye-contact was a bit overwhelming, even for me; my eyes began to water for some reason. “Yep, beauty,” the sincerity in his eyes held me spell bound, “you’ve gotta enjoy the beauty of life in everything,” he sang. “Beauty in sunsets, beauty in the mountains, beauty in nature, and especially in people…and not one opportunity to enjoy it should be lost.” He jovially waved to some passersby as they greeted him by name. “Good to see ya!” he beamed with a palpable joy as they walked passed. Surprised, I realized that this man had some real wisdom to share and even more surprising was the fact that I had automatically underestimated him; the moment he revealed his mental impairment I had already formed a judgment about him in my mind. “You know, a lot of people call me retarded and the doctors, well they say that I have a mental disability, ” he said unashamed. “Oh my God, have I been that arrogant and transparent?!” I felt instantly embarrassed, and although I was inclined to look away to try and hide it, I couldn’t break the hold that his eyes had upon mine. “But you know how I see it beautiful lady?” his smile held steady and true, “it’s the people who don’t know how to enjoy the beauty of life who are disabled. I’m happy that I had my accident,” he proclaimed, “because before that, I was retarded; walking around blind to all the beauty of life and unable to connect with others.” I sat speechless, caught by the truth of his words and the love emanating from this man. Was it the sunset or was it him that was causing the glow around us, I wondered. “Welp, nice to meet you beautiful lady,” he slapped his knees and bounced up from his seat. “Have a beautiful evening!”
“Thank you Paul,” I could only manage a whispered response. I sat stunned and humbled, watching him walk away until he disappeared from sight. Finally looking back at the mountains, the post-sunset sky had become a painted canvas of pink and orange smeared clouds that spread across the blue expanse. And sitting alone at Majestic View park, I realized that Paul had the most majestic view of all!

In Love and Light,

ReV