Sally Forth

Daredevils are people who are bold and reckless, such as; Evel Kenievel, with his ramp to ramp motorcycle jumps; or, Felix Baumgartner, the record holder of the highest skydives and fastest free falls; or, Alain Robert, the “French Spiderman,” famous for climbing sky scrapers.

Most of us don’t consider ourselves daredevils, but along the way, we have had a few adventures. Without adventure, something in us goes dormant.

One of my favorite adventurers is my 90-year-old friend, Jack. He lives in a senior residence with his dear wife, Irene. She won’t tell people how old she is, but obviously she likes older men. Jack enjoys riding the city buses, and everyday he has a new experience and, “meets the most interesting people.”

Last week, Jack met a young woman, on the bus, who told him, “This is the best day of my life!” “What makes it so good?” asked Jack. She said, “I just got out of prison.” “What were you in for?” asked Jack. “Armed robbery,” she replied. Not missing a beat, Jack asked, “What made you do that?” She shook her head and replied, “That bum of a husband. He made me do it!”

Just goes to show that on a trip, it doesn’t matter how far you go to have an adventure along the way. Tom Cahill said, “A journey is measured in friends rather than miles.” And, Irene said, “I don’t care how many new friends he makes, as long as he doesn’t bring them home!”

I’ve had a lot of adventures in my life, some of them better than others. I swam with the dolphins in Roatan, Honduras. That is not so unusual. However, I got involved with a mama dolphin and her calf, and was warned to avoid Mama’s tail. Remembering that dolphins are among the cutest animals that could still destroy me, I looked into her gaping mouth, gave her a quick pat and swam away.

In Tahiti, I tried snorkeling off the back platform of a small ship. The snorkeling worked out better than hoisting myself back onto the platform, since the waves had swelled and the platform was now several feet higher, and moving from side to side. After a few feeble attempts, and several mouthfuls of water, two burly sailors hoisted me up and tossed me onto the deck like a flipping mackerel.

My most dangerous adventure involved playing pedestrian dodge ball while crossing a busy street in Saigon. Motorcycles sped around me going in all directions, except up my legs, and one of the drivers yelled in English, “Walk slowly! Don’t stop, or you may die!” It wasn’t raining, but I raised my umbrella in self defense.

Albert Einstein said, “The one who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The one who walks alone, is likely to find himself in places no one has ever been.” You betcha’, Al.”

Robert Trussell, of the Kansas City Star, interviewed me when my play, Under Midwestern Stars appeared at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre in 2007. At the end of the interview, he asked me, “How can someone your age write a play?” I thought of saying, “You would never ask a man that question,” but instead I said, “I’m not too old to dream. I think it’s a mistake to think that only young people can do things and have adventures.”

 Life is an adventure, not an obstacle---just ask Jack!

Esther Blumenfeld (“Life is a blank canvas, and you need to throw all the paint on it you can.”) Danny Kaye