Poor Boy Makes Out Chapter Six: Evolution - The final Chapter

[walkin jack]

Poor Boy Makes Out 6: Evolution-The Final Chapter

It has been a while. 22 years to be exact, since the Spiral Dreamer and her stalwart crew chanced upon the Sea of Enchantment while cruising the Mediterranean Sea. It has been said that time is the fire in which we all burn. I suppose that's the God's honest truth. Doesn't matter in the least whether you are rich or poor, a powerful leader or a insignificant insect, time makes no distinction and Father Time will ultimately have his way with us all.

I am a very old man now. My knees are gone and my over all health picture is in a relentless state of decline. Still, my mind is sharp and, with more good days behind me than ahead, I spend my days reliving the adventures that filled my life with a rich texture that others can only dream about. The one thing that I seem to spend the most time thinking about is how much I miss Billy. He passed away in his sleep one night, 14 years ago, aboard the Spiral Dreamer.

That day we had had one of the most exciting days of fishing of our lives. That evening, after dinner, we were sitting out on the main sundeck, under a starry sky and having a taste of rum and enjoying some heavenly Cuban cigars. Billy seemed to sense that his time was drawing near. The talk turned serious and he seemed unsettled and anxious to tell me something. We reflected on the past and said how we were glad we met and that our friendship had turned out to be the best thing in both our lives. We took turns recounting one tale after another of all the places we'd seen and all the things we'd done.

When we stood up to head to our suites, Billy stepped up to me and gave me a big old bear hug. Neither of us spoke as he turned and walked off toward his final night aboard the Spiral Dreamer. I was over come with a sense of dread. An ominous feeling swept over me and I slept fitfully that night.

Next morning We were all at the breakfast table in the galley and Billy's glaring absence was weighing heavy on my heart. The conversation was lively and laughter rang out and filled the room. Molly looked over at me and said, "Think I'll go check on Uncle Billy." "That's okay Molly, I'll go", I said. The moment I opened the door and saw him I knew.

His face was peaceful and a slight smile gave him an expression of complete contentment. I sat on the edge of his bead and touched his cool forehead. Good-bye, my old friend. Thank you for the years of good friendship. You were a good man...you were and honest man...you were a man I was always proud to call my friend. I will never forget you. I said a small prayer and left him there in his peaceful slumber.

The others were inconsolable when I returned to the galley and broke the news. Jim had finished eating and returned to his duties on the bridge. I asked Josh to go and get him that I had something to say and I only wanted to have to go through it one time. When he returned they all sat around the table and looked anxiously at me, each face a mask of dread. "We lost Billy last night." My voice broke and it sounded, to me, like it was coming from an echo in another room. Every one was frozen in shock and tears flowed like a river. Jim said it best when he said that, "Billy has gone now but he's had a long happy life and he left this earth painlessly, in the company of the people he cared the most about and doing what gave him the most pleasure. What more could any man wish for". The wisdom of his words rang true but the heart-break was going to take all of us some time to come to terms with.

We decided to give Billy a traditional burial at sea. Captain Jim presided over the ceremony and Billy's earthly remains were committed to the briny deep. So long Billy, you will forever dwell in our memory. Rick sang a beautiful song he had written for Billy and we all stood with tears in our eyes as we had our last glimpse of our friend as he embarked upon his new life under the sea. Perhaps Elera would find him and they would return to the Sea of Enchantment. It pleased me to think so, anyway.

What I'd like to do now is to invite you all to come back with me across time. Let me take you back and recap the last 22 years and get you caught up on the events and current status of all of our lives. It's about all I think of these days and it would be no small comfort to me if you would indulge a tired old man. And besides, you might like to see how every one turned out. So come with me now. Let's go for one last adventure...one last ride aboard Spiral Dreams. It all happened about like this.........

Billy and I decided a couple of years later to share our experiences of the time we were swept up in the Sea of Enchantment. We missed the thrill of a good fishing day now that it was a sure thing every day. Some how it seemed that the uncertainty of not knowing if we would catch fish or not added to the anticipation and excitement. Seemed that it was the days we didn't do so well that gave balance to our fishing pleasure and made the days of good fishing all the more exciting.

Anyway, the others had been after us to tell of our experiences. They seemed to sense that it was a whole lot more than just a couple of old fools falling out of their boat. We knew that it was the right thing to do. We prefaced our story by telling them that it was just between the 8 of us: Rick, Jim, Darrell, James, Josh, Molly, Billy and myself.

We were going to be quite serious and we would brook no snickering or laughing or guffawing. At the first sign of ridicule the story ended, never to begin again. We were going to be giving up a very special gift and we were happy to do it because we could no longer keep our secret from our sea-faring family. The room got still and jaws dropped. you could have heard a pin drop. There was not one person in the room that showed any sign of disbelief. There were a few questions and then every one seemed to accept our tale.

Later that summer, we were cruising the South Pacific/East China Sea area around the Ryuku Island Chain. I had served a total of nearly 2 years on the island of Okinawa during my days in the service and we had paid "The Rock" as it was called in those days, a little vist. We pulled into the port at Naha, on the southern end of the island which is about 67 miles long and about 7 miles wide, and I excused myself for the day leaving the others to entertain themselves as best they might.

I grabbed a cab and headed north to the little village of Henoko. I didn't recognize the place. I wandered the streets for an hour or so but I just couldn't make a connection with the past in this unfamiliar little village. I caught another cab and went south to a little village called Kin Village.

I'd had a serious love affair with a beautiful girl there and I wanted to see if I could find here. I was able to find her family and learned that she had died a long time ago. Her family told me that up until the time of her death she still spoke of me often and never forgot all the good times we had, rippin' around the island on my scooter. With a sigh I said my farewells to her family and headed back to Naha, my nostalgic urges satisfied.

We put to sea and a week later we were sitting out on the aft fishing deck, all of us talking and sipping rum. We were doing a little trolling but the action had been slow all morning. James Pointed to a little spec on the horizon and asked the crowd in general if that could be a ship or a boat of some kind. Josh picked up a pair of binoculars off the table and studied the "spec" for several minutes. Then he told us that it was indeed a power craft and it was headed straight for us at a good clip.

We all followed Jim to the bridge and when he pulled it up on radar we learned that it was indeed headed right for us...at a speed of 45 knots. As it got closer and more details of it's appearance became visible, Jim said that he was not comfortable with the look of the boat and the aggressive attitude with which it was bearing down on us. We had a quick conference and came up with a game plan. Josh and Darrell had a brief conference and went below for some supplies and equipment. When they returned they donned wetsuits and scuba gear and slipped quietly over the starboard side, out of view of the oncoming boat. They swam around and positioned themselves off the port bow, in a position where they could observe what was about to transpire.

When the boat was within hailing distance they fired a shell across our bow and ordered us to heave-to and prepare to be boarded. They did not respond to Jim's attempts to contact them on the radio. As they pulled up along side of us they lowered their launch and motored over to us, all the while the two scruffy looking characters that stayed aboard the pirate boat stood on the forward deck of their boat and pointed their fully automatic weapons at us.

Three filthy, grizzled looking characters came aboard the Spiral Dreams and approached us where we sat on the aft fishing deck. "This every one?" inquired the leader. "Yes" I said, "there is no one else aboard." "you better be tellin' me the truth, Pal".

Molly blurted out the obvious question, "What are you all doing...What do you want?" They all laughed, "Why, ain't you never heared of PIRATES, little lady?" It was the leader again and he was looking very hard at Molly and I didn't like the expression on his face.

They had all of us to go below and gather up all our valuables and all the cash on board. They kept Molly with them and said that she'd be alright as long as every one co-operated and did as they were told. Well, we weren't about to take any chances so we just held our breath as we got all the loot together and silently prayed that Josh and Darrell had a plan working.

When we arrived back on deck with the loot one of the pirates came over and snatched all the bags out of our hands and scuttled back over to his boss. All the bags were emptied on the table and their contents examined. They raised their eyebrows in pleasant surprise when they saw the haul they had just made.

"You folks have been very helpful. I know it don't seem fair but here is how this is gonna end; you boys are gonna feed the fishes and we are going to be the new proprieters of this fine craft. 'Course now, we'll just have to keep the little lady with us for, shall we say, entertainment purposes!" As he sneered his evil grin he drooled a thick rope of saliva down his chin whey wiped away with the sleeve of his filthy shirt. We all averted our eyes in disgust.

They all laughed and we all just looked at each other, frightened and thinking that it was not too soon, no sir, not too soon at all, for Josh and Darrell to make their move and give us the upper hand. Just at that moment there was a tremendous explosion on the pirate boat. Instantly, the entire craft was engulfed in boiling flames and sinking hard by the fantail.

Josh and Darrell had slipped aboard and carefully staying out of sight and remaining perfectly quiet rigged up the explosives and detonators they had brought with them. They rigged the stern of the boat, working in total silence and the two pirates kept their attention, and machine guns, trained on us. The bombs rigged and ready for action, Darrell and Josh slipped off the boat with all the stealth they had used to get aboard. Unbeknownst to any one, they submerged and swam back around to the other side of the Spiral Dreams, out of sight of the men on the pirate boat and all of us as well.

They silently slipped aboard our boat, took off the scuba gear and pulled out their hand guns and made their way to the aft fishing deck. Just when the other pirates were deeply engrossed in their newly-acquired wealth, Darrell detonated the charges on the pirate boat.

KAAAAAAA - BOOOOOOOOM!!!!! The explosion was loud enough to deafen every one and the concussion nearly knocked us all off our feet.

In the blur of the next few moments, Josh and Darrell stepped out and pointed their weapons at the pirates. "Drop them shooters and kiss the deck", snarled Darrell. They all turned in unison and seeing only 2 men with hand guns decided to go for it. It was the worst, and last, mistake those idiots made on earth.

Darrell juked left and Josh juked right, each firing as they fell sideways. The pirates began spraying bullets right up the middle, where Josh and Darrell had been moments earlier. When the smoke cleared and the dust settled the bad guys lay on the deck, oozing blood and life. Darrell and Josh regained their feet, unharmed and, holding their weapons on the pirates approached and kicked their machine guns over the side.

All three of the pirates perished from their wounds in a matter of seconds and we tossed their stinking carcasses over the side. Now the only evidence that any of this had happened was about 3 gallons of blood on the deck and about a hundred bullet holes in the superstructure behind where Josh and Darrell had been standing. All easily repaired and cleaned up. There was no sign of the pirate boat and no floating trace of it or any of the pirates.

"Good Night Nurse...That was CLOSE", cried Molly. "Too dang close to suit me!, Bill said. "I need to fish for a couple of hours to calm down. I gotta go below and get me my BillyStiX Spiral Wrapped rod and catch me some FISH. Any one care to join me?" It was his way of blowing off the tension of the last hour. He was grinning broadly and Rick and Josh and Jim and Darrell and James all thought that sounded like a good idea.

While we all made a dash for our BillyStiX rods Molly headed to the galley to whip up some lunch and a couple of pitchers of rum punch. The rest of the day was spent frolicking on the aft fishing deck catching fish. Those great spiral wrapped rods landed us a goodly number of fine fish. We kept a few for supper and safely released the rest. We all pitched in and cleaned up the deck the next day. James and Josh got some tools and a bucket of spackle and plugged all the bullet hole. A little paint and now there was no visible evidence of the shoot out that had happened just a couple of days earlier.

The following summer, we had returned to Florida and had a nice shore leave. I took care of Billy's affairs and no mention was ever made concerning our encounter with the pirates. All that three weeks in the past, we were now in the area of the Bermuda Triangle and I was up on the aft fishing deck giving my favorite BillyStix rod a good work out when Josh and Molly came up to me.

They both had very excited grins on their faces and they were holding hands. The dawn of realization must have been obvious on my face because they seemed to recognize it and understood that I knew what they were about to announce. I stood up because I wanted to be on my feet when I heard what I was sure I was about to hear.

Molly squeezed Josh's hand as if to encourage him to get on with it. Josh cleared his young throat and looked me in the eye. "MollyandIareinloveandwewannagetmarried" He blurted out. "Whoa nellie", I cried. "Well, it's about time, is all I got to say!" Hugs and hand shakes all around and then we went to tell the others.

The mood aboard the Spiral Dreams was festive to say the least. We all scurried around to decorate the main sundeck, where the ceremony was to be held. Darrell slaved in the galley to prepare a feast befitting the occasion. Molly busied her self in the days before the big event making her wedding dress, which was gorgeous. Not your typical wedding gown, mind you. Oh noooo, but a beautiful, long, form fitting dress with puffed up sleeves and tight at the waist with a long sash tied in back The dress was white with beautiful red, orange and pink hybiscus flowers printed all over it.

The Day of the ceremony we all dressed up to the nines and Captain Jim was beaming in his dress white captains uniform. Rick had written some special music for the day. Not traditional wedding music but soft, sentimental music in the style of the islands and expressing sentiments of love and devotion, befitting the occasion.

Molly was a vision in her dress. She wore a hybiscus wreath on her head and carried a bouquet of fresh tropical flowers she had taken from the garden on the forward sundeck. When she and Josh walked down the make-shift aisle, Josh stood tall and proud, a handsome young man with his bride upon his arm. And Molly...Molly was the lovliest sight my old eyes had EVER beheld. My heart was fit to bust. I was SO happy and SO proud of them both. They had grown very close over the time since Josh had come aboard. They were inseparable and we all kinda figured that they would some day marry.

We waited a few days to give them some privacy for their honeymoon. Then I called every one together in the galley for a meeting. Billy had instructed me to wait until Josh and Molly got together before revealing what I was about to reveal. Billy had left full ownership of the Spiral Dreams to me. A fact which every one knew. The other terms of his will had been known only to me and it was now time to inform ever one of all the details.

Billy had claimed ownership of the island on which we had been stranded for nearly 4 years. He engaged a marine engineering and construction company to build a proper house on the island. It was a big house, providing plenty of room for new-comers to the Johnson family. He had a solar power plant built and had a pier built that went out all the way to the reefs.

He had a 20 ft sail boat built so Josh and Molly could sail around the island when ever they wanted to. The house and grounds were fully equipped and provisioned and contracts had been secured to have new supplies and provisions delivered to them every other month. Satellite phones and other high powered communications equipment were in place as well. Josh and Molly sat there dumbfounded as I explained all this to them. I handed them all the papers and legal documents and turned to Captain Jim and asked him if he'd mind plotting a new course, back to mine and Billy's Island. Jim smiled at Josh and Molly and said that it would be his pleasure and he'd see to it immediately.

When we set them ashore we all went ashore with them to see the new house and facilities. Plumbers had installed plumbing, drawing from the dark sweet pool in the jungle. Everything was just wonderful. We stayed one night and as we set sail the next day tears flowed and promises were made to stay in touch and as we watched them, standing out on the end of their pier, they waved and blew kisses until they were so far away that we could no longer see them. It was to be 10 years before I saw them again.

Billy had left each of us a generous inheritance. I, of course was already a multi millionaire but Billy did leave me the boat. Each of the others took their inheritance and made new lives for them selves. We had all had our adventure aboard the Spiral Dreames but now, with Billy gone, we all knew it could never be the same. We decided to call it a dream come true and seek our separate fortunes wherever we could find them.

I hired a new crew and continued to make my way around the oceans of the world. It all felt so empty now. the new crew were fine, hardworking and loyal folks but it just wasn't the same. Still, a life on the sea was the only life I knew and the only life I cared for. My remaining days, such as they were, were going to be lived free on God's blue oceans if I had anything to say about it. It just never occurred to me that I might not have a say-so on that one.

Jim

Jim built a charter fishing business based on the island of Barbados. He started with one boat and over the next 5 years, built his charter business to 2 new facilities, one on ST. Thomas and one on French Martinique, with a total of 10 boats. His charter services were popular with fishing enthusiasts all over the free world. He provided expert fishing for all his customers. He hand picked and personally trained all his captains and each boat was equipped with only BillyStiX rods. Every one wanted to get some of their own but Jim would never part with any of them. He had qutie a few but he knew that there would never be any more and could not bear to part with even one. The last I saw of Jim he had retired back to Texas and was just enjoying the vast fortune he had built. We stay in touch but I haven't seen him in a while now.

Darrell

Darrell opened a restaurant in the Cayman Islands. He specializes in crawfish and has a clientele that comes from around the world to sample his fare. He became the most sought after chef in the world and eventually did a live TV Special once a year from his restaurant. His fame and reputation as a chef of impeccable taste and class remains today and he can still be found in the kitchen, dousing swamp dust on the latest batch of bugs. What is the name of his restaurant? Why, he calls it The Galley, of course!

Rick

Rick built a fancy recording studio outside Nashville, Tennessee. He worked day and night on it and over-saw every aspect of its design and construction. He devoted all his time to his music and within 2 years of the completion of his studio, he had earned the reputation of a solid and enduring entertainer.

He had developed his own brand of Texas style music. It was a little bit country, a little bit blues, a little bit rock, and a whole of the heart of Rick himself. He sold more records that any artist in the history of recorded music. He entertained kings and presidents all over the world but he never forgot his friends.

He maintained a permanent home on Baffin Bay, in South Texas and he made it a point to spend a month there every summer just fishing and hanging with his friends. He also came home every year and stayed from Thanksgiving until after new years. I talked to Rick only last week by satellite phone. He has had to slow down a bit but he still loves his music and he still love his home and friends in Texas.

James

James built a huge offshore construction company. He spent the first 3 years getting the company on its feet and by the end of that time he was known the world over as the best in the world. After he had the company established he settled down at his home in League City, Texas and built him a pretty elaborate shop.

In his shop he liked to tinker with different projects that intrigued him. He had blossomed into quite an inventor and soon he had many people coming to him with all sorts of ideas and projects. Several of his inventions were really great and earned him a vast fortune and reputation as one of the most brilliant mechanical minds in the world. The last I heard from James he was busy on his latest brainstom and his future seemed to stretch on into infinity.

Well that about catches us up then, I suppose. As for me, I had a stroke 5 years ago. Never made a complete recovery. Josh and Molly were kind enough to take me in and care for me. They both told me that they had come to think of Billy and me and surrogate fathers and they insisted that I come and spend my remaining days there, on the island with them.

It hurt me to do it but I sold the Spiral Dreamer. It turned out pretty well after all though because I sold it to one of Darrell's cousins. Her name was Wendi and she was a cop. Darrell had used some of his inheritance and had set her up in her own private security business and it had really taken off. She made a fortune and when she made me an offer on the Spiral Dreams I knew that it was meant to be. She said that she was gonna have an all girl crew too. She hired all her friends. I hear they are continuing the tradition of many high adventures on the high seas and that Wendi, now that she doesn't have to worry about getting out of the boat to wade fish if she doesn't want to, has become quite the accomplished fishin' gal. Most days, I hear, she can be found on the aft fishing deck, bending her favorite BillyStiX rod and puttin' a whuppin' on the fish.

I am content, these days, to spend my evenings in quiet reflection. I usually get Josh or Molly or one of the kids (They have 4 kids now. Twin boys that are named Billy and Jack, are 17, a pretty auburn haired 15 year old girl named named Sahree and a precocious little blond haired 13 year old girl named Elera) to wheel me out in my wheel chair. Usually, whoever gets stuck with that chore would stay with me for a while and we'd talk. The kids are special and I love them all as if they were my own grandchildren. Josh and Molly love each other very much and we are all very, very happy, living together on our own little island.

We lost Baxter the year after Elera was born. He was old and could no longer run and chase the critters in the jungle and hassle the sand crabs on the beach. He had always been a strong hearted dog and one night while Josh and Molly were fishing out at the end of the pier, old Baxter just put his weary old head down on his front paws and gave a big sigh. He closed his eyes and slipped quietly and peacefully into that place were all good dogs go.

It's just across the Rainbow Bridge. A place where the rabbits are easy to catch and the days are always warm spring days with blue skies and endless fields of wildflowers.

Josh was heart broken but Molly said she'd call and have our next shipment of supplies to inclued a cute black puppy, just like Baxter had been years before.

When the new pup arrived he turned out to be an exact replica of Baxter, I tossed him one of my old flip-flops that Baxter had been particularly fond of and he just looked at it. Then he raised his big, brown, sad-looking eyes to me as if to say, "what'dja want me to do with that?" I just grinned and said, "Well , it was a long shot but I just had to try."

Josh named the new pup Buddy. He said that the little fella just looked like a "Buddy" to him, so Buddy it would be. Josh and Buddy were wrestling around on the floor and Molly looked at me and said "What have we done?" We all laughed as the wrestling match on the floor continued.

Some times when I'm having a good day, I'll dig my crutches out of the back of the closet in my room and struggle my way up the path, into the jungle and over to the old huts that Billy and I had built in another time. Not much left now but as I enter my old home, I'm flooded with memories of my life and all the great friends I have known and all the great adventures I have had. I count my blessing and I know that I am indeed a lucky man. Among the most vivid of my memories is the thrill of sitting on the aft fishing deck of the Spiral Dreamer, my BillyStix Spiral Wrapped rod in my hands, locked in mortal combat with some magnificent creature of the deep. I know in my heart that this will be the last movie that plays behind my eyes as I close them for the last time.



Is that the end you ask? No, there can never be an end on the journey through life. There can only be.......EVOLUTION.