Chapter 13

[Charlie writes from Valencia]

It was a quiet night. Bobbi snuggled up next to Andrea at some point and we slept spoon style with my wife in the middle. The three of us woke early, dressed, and went outside. It was quiet. We could hear the sound of no people. I was used to it now. We had heard it often on our trips to Europe.

"Andrea, would you be okay with it if I were Director of Protection?"

"Charles, I want you to be happy in what you do or don't do. I think you have so much to offer that it would be hard to turn the community down. I want to be with you. You are my happiness. We established that without question before we married.

"If you want my opinion, I would like for us to return to the farm and get Doctor George to run one more time. I would like for you to be a father or close when elected. Also, I would ask, my husband, that you set a limit on your time of service. I think Grandpop went too long and Doctor George is doing that also. Protection is too large for part-time leadership to be successful. You will need to decentralize the governing because that's what you think is right.

"Charles, I will stand beside you and support you in whatever you want to do. As long as I'm beside you, I will be happy."

Bobbi said, "I would like to feel that way about someone someday. I thought about it last night. Tomas is a good guy but I want more than he has to give. I want a husband as smart and loving as Charles. I am a wildcat until the right guy shows up to partner with me. I'm not sure that I want to be tamed. Tomas likes the outside covering but he hasn't delved into who I really am. I'm not sure he can." It was the right time to do it. So, we gave her a hug.

We went inside for breakfast and then we all went to the beach for the day. We carried a picnic lunch and, of course, a number of radios. We laid out, played in the water, and enjoyed our family and friends. I noticed Tomas was keeping a little distance from Bobbi and she was hanging around my parents and us a bit more than usual. My sister is a great person and I decided that it would take a special man for her to be happy.

We returned to the terminal for the evening. I announced that we would leave for Seville in the morning. I was looking over my notes and those of my mother. Neither of us has written about what we do in the evenings.

Our groups are usually singing and storytelling groups in the evenings. My "Uncle" Ted is known for his tales. He always says, "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story." His stories are usually funny but always have a point. Others are tellers of true story experiences. Surprisingly, my Dad is one of the best at that. For all that he doesn't like to speak in public, he can tell the story of an expedition in a way that captures your interest. His voice, with its deep bass rumble, at once soothes you as it makes you tingle.

Dad's singing voice is good but only for the bass line and then only if it's low. I sing baritone or lead if it's not too high. Andrea has a beautiful voice and is frequently called upon to sing solos. We duet pretty well with me singing harmony. I play guitar to accompany though we have a number of guitar players who can accompany and perform fantastic solos, too. Our songs are for the most part old hymns and folk tunes from before the Day. We have a few from after the Day but it is only now that more positive ones have been written. Sad songs are not fun. I think our most popular song is "Amazing Grace," with "The Old Rugged Cross" close behind it. We sing "America, the Beautiful" frequently. On this trip, "Dixie," "Sweet Home, Alabama," and "Georgia on my Mind" have been popular along with an old favorite, "We're Tenting Tonight." We enjoy making up harmonies to our singing and my little brother, Amos, can sing higher than anyone!

We enjoyed our time this evening. I don't think Tomas was real happy about these times. He didn't know the tunes and his voice was not very good. Now, he seemed to be separated from Bobbi. She was hanging with us like she usually did even when she was part of the Trio. I had my arms around my wife and my sister. My guitar was in the hands of a more able player. I enjoyed holding the two beauties on each side of me. There was a special feeling from my right side where my wife was leaning into me. We liked to touch any time we could.

We maintained contact by radio though the time difference made it more difficult. All the patients were doing well. Hope would be leaving in a few more days though its passengers were enjoying their stay with the Italians.

Our evening finally broke up and everyone went to their bedrolls. Bobbi joined us at ours without Tomas. We slept quietly through the night. In the morning, we would leave for Seville and continue our trip.

Seville was deserted. Some of the city had burned maybe ten years ago. It was also hot. Looking our maps, we could get to a beach easily but the damage included the airport. We landed but I'm not sure why. After the Humvee tour, no one cared about going outside. After a quick conversation by radio, we quickly decided to go on to Gibraltar in hopes that it would be in better shape.

Landing was both easy and exciting. Gibraltar is a peninsula running north-south. The airport runs across it east-west and is just north of the Rock. There was plenty of length but coming in over water and looking at water as you land is a little disconcerting. The really strange thing was a road going across the runway! I checked it out on maps we found in the terminal and that's truly what it was. It made sense because the runway took all the available land cutting off the south end of the peninsula where the rock is located. As we came in, Andrea exclaimed that there were beaches. I knew where we would be as soon as we could.

Duck landed and the Humvee was quickly deployed. There weren't any signs of people. Airports weren't the kind of place people who weren't flying hung around. I cleared Mallard to land and we exited the planes. There was a very light breeze though it wasn't enough to notice in our planes but ruffled the air enough to keep the sweat from sticking to our bodies.

We searched the airport for fuel and found enough to fill our big birds. There wasn't much left now. We marked our maps. Over lunch, we decided to be tourists for the afternoon and the next day as well. Andrea looked at me. "Swimming this afternoon?"

"Suits me." Once everything was settled, we grabbed some towels and a four-wheeler and left for the beach. There was one just south of the runway's east end. We had lots of company. Our expedition was turning into sun worshippers and swimmers.

We spread our towels and removed our clothes to put on our wisps of fabric. Andrea said, "I love the opportunity to sun and swim. It's not that much different except for the salt from our lake at home. I miss our place. I miss the quiet." She chuckled. "You have taught me well, my husband. I will enjoy some solitude with you when we return home.

"I miss our farm, too. I miss SJ for providing tour information and general information about any area where we land. I noticed that Anna was doing that today."