#9: Our first nights apart...

... ended last night.

After a few months of anticipating it (with excitement I must confess) I had to take my first trip out of town for work. After taking up my new job a few months ago, I longed for the time I'd say good-bye to my wife for a couple of days as we'd be apart while I kept learning more and more through what I expect is my last non-self-employment ever.

It's not that I wouldn't miss her, a case I had to make pretty clear to her; it was more a sense of "anticipating" what could I learn, what would I learn, how will I grow through this time apart. Of course, those three do not refer only to our relationship, but to some sort of professional growth and learning as well. And personally too, as there is nothing that I treasure more looking back in my life that the opportunities to learn that travel has afforded me (either travelling inside our outside of my country).

So off to Jacksonville I went. Barely my fourth time ever in Florida and anticipating to work hard for a few days, I was in for some exciting days. After having done my job as trainer for people who buy franchisees of our system, this was the first time I'd be actually walking the walk and helping to actually start operations. It was an interesting time for our company as well, being this is the first store east of Dallas as part of our most aggressive expansion effort so far.

But after three days there, I could tell this would be a sort of "first" trip for me. While the beaches of Jacksonville were just ten minutes down the road that passed in front of our store parking lot, I had no chance to visit them. All of the city I ever saw was two main freeways, a restaurant, and the shopping area where we were located. So I started picturing this as the first time I'd ever be to a new town and not have a chance to meet its locals or see its locations.

As we opened our doors for business, I decided to learn from our customers as much as I could, so here I was, striking a conversation with Puerto Ricans, Bolivians, Colombians (including my new friend, the franchise owner, whom I had previously met and trained in Dallas), Americans, Hondurans, some Mexicans (less than 10% of all customers and less than 1/4 of Spanish speakers, so much different than Dallas) and even Europeans. Wow, do I love talking to people from different places! And I learned quite a few things about our business and gathered some ideas for our marketing and straegic efforts.. but so far, no learning for my personal growth... nothing really touching I could share with my wife, besides meeting a guy from Croatia who was a big fan of the same soccer player I admired so much, Davor Suker, striker for my favorite team in the world: Real Madrid. Not that Carlee would care about soccer, but having been to Croatia, this was, so far the best I could do.

It was however on the afternoon of my third day that I met this interesting couple with their child. Having lived in Chicago for dozen years, they considered themselves "big pizza fans", keen on trying every new pizza place they can set their sights on. So here they came, and anxiously I tried picking up a conversation with them about the things they look for in a pizza while their special order cooked. I noticed something about their accent but couldn't gather the courage to ask them their nationality (if anyone looked from out of the US, it was me, not this blue-eyed white-skin smiling couple).

So after a few minutes about pizza stuff I cannot remember, their order was ready and before they were leaving I knew it was my last chance to inquire and add another country to the list of places where I've talked to people from. I handed the pizza, and quite cautiously I asked "So are you from Chicago originally?" -"No, ex-Yugoslavia" the man replied. -"Oh, Croatia?" I smiled "a couple of hours ago we talked about soccer with a gentleman from Croatia!" I proudly said. He smiled, "no, Bosnia" -"Ah! Meho Kodro from Barcelona" another soccer hero who'd make me look good and knowledgeable I thought. He smiled even more, "Yes, but we left so long ago... but you know a lot about our countries" he said as to empathize without making me feel ignorant about anything besides soccer. So trying to regain my composure I asked "Are you from Bosnia too, ma'am?" and she gently nodded, while her husband's eyes lit up and I could sense some paternal love in those pupils: "No, she's from Serbia". Suddenly, my body froze, and my face tried to hide between my stupid mumbled "Oh!" followed by a brief second of silence. Soccer could not help me anymore.

"Yes I know!" he exclaimed with the friendliness of a guy who can't believe his luck. "We are not supposed to be together, but I guess love conquers all"... he said, as he walked out the door. I had to stop him... and ask him for a picture... to remember the face of who had just taught me a beautiful lesson that reminded me so much of Carlee and I... indeed, love conquers all... I guess.