08/13/2024
A Memory From Patagonia, Chile. One time back in the 1990's, we were guiding a group of 6 on a lake with float tubes. There was this one really fat guy, he couldn't get into the tube without falling upside down.
There was this doctor/ kid about 32 and his dad was in his mid 70's. I kept getting pi**ed because the kid would "high hole" his dad and take the best & easiest spot and all the trout. His poor dad would get sloppy seconds after a death march to where his unempathetic son would fish & win. One day out at a beautiful lake in Patagonia Chile, I remember saying to the kid, "I'm busy here with John Candy, can you keep an eye out for your dad, it's really windy, go over against the reeves and have the wind at your back casting laterally." He rode off with dad on his side. After I got my Sumo Wrestler wrestled, I heard a yelp of happiness and as I turned the corner of reeves to look out to the group, I saw the kid with a trout on and rod bent over hootin and hollering, I saw dad halfway across the lake as the wind had swept him away, he was no match for the Patagonian wind that was determining his fate. I yelled to Juan Ramos who at the time was on the Coyhaique Carabineros force (Police) working for me in the summers. I stayed with the group and Juan got back to his truck, then I saw him drive around the lake flashing his badge to every farmer as they opened their gates until he made it to the otherside of the lake to pick up dad. After he got back, we all welcomed dad and Juan was a true hero, that could have been a disaster yet averted due to Juan's quick thinking.
Later that evening after a couple of drinks, I took the kid aside and said," Jeff, I wanted to ask you a favor. Could you please show a little more respect for your father? I had asked you to watch over him at the lake and actually the other day, you always seem to take the best spot instead of respecting your old Sainted Pops." He didn't realize what he was doing? He still thought of himself as being the adolescent. In his eyes, this trip was for and about him. I explained to him how over the years, I had seen kids and fathers that hadn't let go. Either the aging father stinking everything up because he won't let go and let the son be the decision maker, constantly making poor decisions on the families behalf. Or the kid who never grew up and is always allowing this to happen by acting oblivious to the obvious, the world doesn't owe you a thing, it was here billions of years before you were born Mark Twain once wrote. The kid looked me in the eye and said he got it and he would be behind pops all the way from here on out. I smiled, took a swig off my beer and rejoined our group. Years later, Juan Ramos became a GOPI (Navy Seal) protecting the President Lagos of Chile when he disarmed a car bomb with 3 seconds left on the timer that would have blown up the building he was in. jt
