Just Joe

Dear Boo and Bubble,

I had a nice reminder the other day of a most pleasant memory.  Your cousins Jamie and Lisa Bryant were in Maine and Lisa posted on FaceBook pictures from their golf outing at Marion Golf Club. Back in the spring of 2004, when Captain and I first started cruising on our sailboat Up Jinks, we made it all the way to Maine from Charleston.  By mid to late summer, after spending some time off the coast of Massachusetts at Cuttyhunk Island, we sailed into Maine and snagged a mooring ball in a place called Sebasco for a few days. There was a resort there with a golf course and tennis courts. The shoreline of the cove creates a beach for the guests at the resort adjacent to the golf club and we could see both from the boat.

Well…..you know me…..I can’t be that close to a golf course without playing it, so one morning we piled our clubs into the dinghy and rode over to shore.  As I recall, it was a beautiful, crisp, “no clouds in the sky” kind of Maine day.  That time of year, autumn temperatures begin to creep into the days, making it prudent to wear a sweater in the early mornings and evenings.  We decided to have breakfast at the lodge before teeing off to let things warm up a bit.

Not many of the tables in the restaurant were occupied, but right next to us sat a young family – a mother, dad and two little boys probably about the ages that you are now.  They were so precious, I couldn’t help but start up a conversation with them.   After a few minutes, I asked the older boy his name.

“I’m Danny,” he said, “but they call me Diesel Danny.”

“Oh, really.  Why is that?”

“Because I’m so fast running around the bases in baseball, they think I’m a diesel engine.” 

Modesty and lack of confidence were no issue for him.

“Wow,” I responded, “you must really be fast!”

Then I turned to the younger brother.  “And, what is your name?”

“Joe,” he replied and then sighed in resignation, “Just Joe.”

I could have eaten him with a spoon!

It turned out that they were on their way to New York City for a reunion – a very special type of reunion.  Two years before, the father had received an unexpected call from his brother (Diesel Danny and Just Joe’s uncle) who was an attorney in Chicago.  The uncle had just been notified that he and his wife were approved to adopt a baby girl in China, but the timing was immediate and critical for getting there to finalize the legalities.  His wife could not go, and he needed someone to accompany him.  Fortunately, Danny and Joe’s dad could drop what he was doing and make the trip.  They met up with several other couples from across the country who were willing to adopt and flew as a group to Beijing, China.  All of them brought back beautiful adopted baby girls.  Danny, Joe and their parents were on their way to New York for a two-year reunion of all the families who made that trip to China together.

My goodness, it has been almost thirteen years to the month that I met them. Diesel Danny is probably out of college and Just Joe is maybe a Sophomore.  I would love to know what happened to them and I would be particularly interested to learn about their little Chinese cousin.  One thing I know for sure – they grew up to be fine, young men.  With parents like theirs, and extended family so willing to offer love and hope to a little girl from half-way around the globe, they could only turn out that way.

As for the golf, I don’t remember specifically how I played, but I do recall that the nine-hole course was rough, rocky, narrow and reliant on Mother Nature for much of its grooming.  And, there was a bell attached to a tree on the #1 green that golfers were to ring when exiting the green so that those behind will know when it’s safe to hit.  Your cousin Lisa included a picture of it in her post and when I saw it, all these memories came cascading back. 

(Boys - At the time this occurred, China had a draconian “one-child” policy to try to curb the population boom in the country.  There was a cultural predisposition towards male offspring, making them considered more valuable.  In light of both these circumstances, baby girls were abandoned at birth as couples hoped to try again for a boy.  Many ended up literally on the doorsteps of the Chinese Welfare Service offices, left there anonymously.  I don’t know if the policy is still in effect now, but this will give you some context for this story.)