Senior Perspective
by Robert Brotherton
Bob passed away January 6 due to a brain aneurysm. He wrote this for Ship to Shore during our voyage.
OFF THE COAST OF SINGAPORE, Oct. 19 – Seven and a half years ago, sailing on the old Universe on a two-week inland passage trip to Alaska, I watched a video about the Semester at Sea program and said, "That’s for me when I retire." This year it has come to pass, and there has not been a moment’s disappointment after the long anticipation. I’d like to say thanks to a whole of people for this experience.
Thanks, travel agent friend David, who thought the Alaska venture would be something I’d enjoy. Thanks, Dr. Axel J. for repairing the heart so that life would continue. Thanks, recovering alcoholics for showing me that living sober can be done and that it is a wonderful way of life. Thanks to my parents who, so many years ago, suggested that following their example might be a pretty good way to live. Thanks to my Uncle Sam who put me through college after WWII under the GI Bill. Thanks to a string of employers over the years who paid me well enough to make this voyage possible after retirement. Thanks to those Significant Others who put up with a self-centered partner and patiently taught him that he was not the most important person in the world. And, friends, your lives and help have given meaning to what would otherwise have been an insignificant life. Abundant gratitude to all those men and women of vision who conceived this marvelous educational program and to the professors who twice a year make it work.
It’s a long way from Chicago to Singapore. The voyage here has taken 35 days, but it has passed like a single day’s frolic. Personally, I enjoy the days at sea as much as those do in port. On this vessel, those days are made more interesting by the wide selection of college classes available. We "Seasoned Salts" are permitted to sit in as long as there are chairs. The academic program offers some 70 courses for credit to students who are making this voyage of discovery. For us seniors, just watching the college students mature and accept more responsibility is a gratifying experience in itself.
Many of us have been chosen as adoptive grandparents by students. This is a special delight. We aren’t given the choice about what family we’re born into. To be individually selected by a young person is truly gratifying. We want to thank you, birth parents and grandparents, who have lent these maturing children to us for the voyage. It is possible that you still think of them running into the house from the school bus, their innocence shining and their enthusiasm brimming. They are now bright young adults. You may well be proud of them. Their spirit and courage and concern for those around them inspire us all. In many cases, your work and sacrifice have given them a unique experience. They may not always in the past have been able to express their thanks easily. The evidence of their growth and new maturity will be your reward and compensation. We’re sure you’ll be pleased. It is easy to believe the world will be a better place because of the new persons you’ve brought to it and the education you’ve given them.
Some of us regret that we’re not going to make port here in Singapore. There will be a chance to come back to visit the city, but we’re going further north to put in. Like the ship itself, we need a bit of a respite to take on fuel and reflect on the voyage to date. It would be great if you all could be with us on the ship. Please be assured that you are very much in our thoughts and our hearts as we look forward to our next port and, like the students, to the chance that there may be mail from home.
