If you didn’t know already, I work as a waiter at the Keg.   It’s a great job, every day is different and you meet alot of different people.

One of those people was Hans Schenkel – or, as we all knew him – Jack.   He was a kind old man who came in for dinner by himself a few times a week.   He always greeted you with a smile and a warm handshake.   Even though I rarely served him because his regular table – table 27 – wasn’t in my section, I always came by his table, shook his hand, and said hello.   He always seemed genuinely appreciative of the gesture and I was more than happy to do it because even though he didn’t realize it, his visits always brought me joy too.

Jack passed away at the age of 82 just after Christmas and his memorial was held this morning.   I was there.   One of the underlying themes of the people who spoke was that Jack had touched many lives.   As I sat there brushing away tears,   I couldn’t help but think that I was one of those lives.   In fact, the mere fact that a waiter was at this man’s funeral was a testament to how much he was loved and missed.

It’s moments like this that make you appreciate the finality of life and make you realize that the small stuff is exactly that – just small stuff.   We all stress over money and the minute details of everyday life but at the end of the day, none of that really matters.

Yes, this trip is costing over $20,000 and sure, not working for 7 months is another boatload of money I’ve missing out on but, you know what, it’s just money.   Years from now, when I’m Jack’s age, I’m not going to be pondering all the money I missed out on, instead, I’ll be thinking about the amazing trip I went on.

24 days to go…

Euro Trip 2013, Pretrip, Trip Journal
Europe 2013
Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *