“I am incapable of conceiving infinity, and yet I do not accept finity. I want this adventure that is the context of my life to go on without end.”
― Simone de Beauvoir , La Vieillesse

My cell phone rang and it was a number that I didn’t recognize.  Immediately I thought it was a telemarketer trying to sell me car insurance or whatever it is they are peddling this week.

I wasn’t going to answer but at the last minute, for some reason, I felt compelled to.  On the other end, there was this little voice that asked: Ana, is that you?

It was Rosita, this wonderfully little older lady that my mother and I met when we travelled to Israel in 2015.  She was in the same tour group we were and we hit if off immediately.

“Only when a person reaches old age can he stop caring about the opinions of his fellows, or of the public, or of the future.” ― Milan Kundera, Life is Elsewhere

She is of Pilipino ancestry and lives in Los Angeles.  Since we met in 2015, we talk on the phone a couple of times a year and have sent each other a little treat here and there.

The last couple of years I have tried calling her, but her number would just ring.  There was no message or beep for me to leave a voice mail.  I assumed that she had passed away.  She is going to be 90 years old and with Covid disrupting our lives and robbing us of loved ones for the last 2 years, I thought it was the only conclusion.

I am glad to have her back.  She explained that she has had health issues, had been in and out of hospital.  She no longer has the cell phone, using mostly a landline now. 

“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.” ― Sophia Loren

She was going through some pictures from her travels and found a picture that we took together.  She searched for my number and found it and was happy that she got me.

She is still funny, talking with a laugh here and there.  She is the type of person that exudes kindness and energy, in her voice and her being.  She was a joy in Israel and today she has been the bright spot of my day.

She mentioned again that she has a house with plenty of rooms for me and my mom to come and visit.  I really hope to have the chance and time to travel and visit her,  and all my friends across the US and overseas, before their light, or mine, gets extinguished.

 “The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it.” ― Jean-Paul Sartre