A Simple Twist of Fate
The big old Boeing B747-400 with the name “Durban” stencilled just below the cockpit on the port side taxied into the bay at JFK International Airport in New York City. After a three day delay the blizzard had finally blown through and it was time to catch my flight home. I’d been working on a dairy farm in Wisconsin for eight months and after a wonderful road trip from Chicago to Detroit and then Nashville I flew into New York City just as a massive winter storm started flexing its icy muscles. Hundreds of flights got cancelled and after rescheduling, notifying my folks and watching a few VIP tantrums unfold, I made my way across the George Washington Bridge into New Jersey to book into a motel where I could ride out the storm. Three days later it was time to try again and I could feel the excitement in my bones as I saw the beautiful South African Airways livery on the tail through the concourse window. I had, against many odds, survived a contract as a farm hand on one of the toughest dairy farms in the US and I was looking forward to see my friends and family again.
I stuffed my bag into the overhead compartment and was settling down in my seat ready for some wine, dinner and a nap. Through the window the vast airport lay stretched out under a blanket of thick white snow, the plowed ramp and taxiways winding like shiny black snakes in the morning sun breaking through the cloud. She strolled up to my row, ripped Levi’s and a straw cowboy hat. She had obviously changed for the warm summer weather awaiting us back in South Africa and I could see her unruly strawberry hair twirling onto her winter-pale shoulders. Her eyes met mine and we greeted. Her voice sounded like a crisp, clear bell. “ Hi, I’m Vera “: she said with a sturdy handshake and sincere smile. I liked this girl. In fact… I was mesmerised by her beauty and friendly demeanour. She was accessible but not a walk-over. Nobody’s fool yet disarming in her humility. So I decided to keep to myself determined not to be “ that guy “. We took off in silence but as the mighty silver bird climbed into the New York night we struck up a conversation that lasted for several hours. It felt like we had known each other in a previous life, ancient connection. Mysterious and beautiful. We both had partners at the time and we walked the line but we both knew that there were sparks. At the airport in Johannesburg we said our goodbyes and in the hustle and bustle neglected to exchange contact details. Things got crazy when I got back and I did what work I could find until my flying training started. I thought of her often, wondering if she ever did the same. A muse, perhaps a missing piece I had lost in a different life.
Several years later Rufus and I boarded a Delta Airlines Boeing Triple Seven from New York to Johannesburg and in mysterious twist of fate I looked up from the book I was reading and saw her approaching down the aisle. It was Vera, beautiful as ever, still wearing that battered hat. You guessed it. She was in the seat next to me. You should have seen Rufus’s face, shaking his head in disbelief at this very strange but incredible coincidence. To this day I still can’t believe this story even though I lived it. Again we spoke deep into the night. We caught up on our travels and adventures. She had gotten married and was living in Tennessee. Her folks still somewhere in the Western Cape. This time we exchanged emails and promised to keep in touch. I was afraid I would never see her again and disappointed that timing was not in our favour but I felt blessed to have had the trans Atlantic flight with her and to hear her voice again.
We never saw each other again and in those days before social media I somehow lost contact with her completely. A new life, new lovers and a wife followed for me and in the eighteen years since I’ve been unable to find out more about her and her whereabouts. I’m grateful to have met her and to be in her orbit, by chance, twice. She is still my muse in many ways and there is a piece of her in every song that I sing. I hope she’s doing well and in a way I wish that our paths might cross again. Not for anything else but to see her face, hear her voice and watch her smile. Even today, when I walk around in the airport terminal I can’t help but scan the crowd for a glimpse of her.
Till we meet again Vera…..
“People tell me it's a sin
To know and feel too much within
I still believe she was my twin but I lost the ring
She was born in spring
But I was born too late
Blame it on a simple twist of fate”
Simple Twist of Fate - Bob Dylan
JB
