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(Paintings
by world-famous artist Jonathon Bowser,
recreated from actual scenes & photos, plus the
mermaid's tail)
Mermaids
- those beautiful (mythical) sea creatures
renowned in folklore for luring mariners into
the deep with their irresistible siren songs,
are generally considered gentle romantic
figures, interested only in fostering devoted
pure love. Though they have been known to try
and romantically capture royalty (The little
mermaid, which didn't end happily) most often
they choose seemingly unimportant people -
mariners or men who just happen to be walking on
"their beach". The ensuing romances are
satisfying, enduring, legendary. A good place
to meet Mermaids is at the seaside, and
that's exactly where I met her ... the Mermaid
who stole my heart - and then took me on a
fast-paced round-the-world adventure!
When Jen and I
first briefly saw each other, it was because her
mother insisting that Jen's dad stop their white
Mercedes on their way back from the beach
("X marks the spot" in the pic below). She offered me
a ride back to the park. As I had been walking from the beach, to escape the hot
African sun, I gratefully accepted. The
passenger-side back door opened for me from
within and climbing in, I found myself
sitting next to a beautiful young girl, probably
16 and still in her bikini from her day
on the beach - but only for
a few minutes, as the car quickly traversed the
remaining distance to the park. We were not
introduced (her mother kept me talking) neither did we exchange any
words - only the briefest of glances.
Many years after
it was written,
I illustrated this poem (which recounts our
summer-romance, from
my perspective)
and presented it, again, to Jennifer, on one of
our frequent tea-dates - and learned something that I
just wasn't prepared for! You see, after
re-reading my poem, for the umpteenth time, this
time Jen suddenly smiled
mysteriously, gave me a hug, made some more tea, and
beckoned me to sit down and prepare myself for a
"little surprise". As I sat there
smiling at her, over my tea-cup, prepared to
listen to my elusive Mermaid, she
related what really happened that day.
So let's put these perspectives together,
Jen's
in purple,
mine it
black. Imagine my
surprise, at discovering all of this so many
years later.
1971,TURNING
the clock back to just after I was given a ride,
sitting next to her, in Jen's dad's Mercedes:
Still a little flustered ... I had that
instinctive feeling that something very
momentous had just happened. I could not stop
myself from thinking about this young woman I
had shared the back seat of that Mercedes with
for those brief few minutes. There was
something unusual intriguing about her -
besides the fact that she clearly was gorgeous!
It felt very different - clearly this was
something other than my teenage hormones - the
effects of which I knew and understood all too
well by now. So after lunch I decided to
walk about the camp and look for that white
Mercedes. "Perhaps" , I thought, "I would meet
this young woman again and, well, I wasn't
exactly sure what I was going to do or say once
I located her - but I do remember that I felt
compelled to try! So, around the park I
walked, searching for that white Mercedes. It
was Christmas time, summer holidays, and Siesta
was a veritable maze of Campers and RV's - but
no white Mercedes to be found. Red ones, Black
ones, Silver ones - but no white ones.
"Strange", I thought, "Perhaps they were just
visiting someone else and were now gone again
... or maybe I just missed it"?
Extra content: At exactly the same time that
I was walking around trying to find her, this
young "mystery woman" - whose name I did not yet
know, was walking around that same park (not
exactly sure why she felt compelled to do so)
... trying to locate me. (I only
discovered this many years later)
... go figure! Well, having failed to
find her - back I went to be with my family
and, having failed to find me - back she went to
her family. "Mom", she said, "I'm going to take
a walk to the "Duka" (Swahili
for "store") Mr.
Nixon (the owner) has some used paperback books
there that he loans out and I feel like relaxing
in the shade with an interesting book". And
at exactly the same time: "Son", my
mother said beckoning to me, "Could you please
go and buy me some milk at the Duka, we have
none left". "Sure Mom", I replied taking the
money from her and heading out on that
fate-filled short trip - and of course, the
rather pivotal poem, "Summer Love",
which follows, and which appears at the end Jon's 2nd.
novel (though he did change it slightly) describes what happened next.
You know, I never
appreciated the power of poetry enough. In 57yrs I've only
written one poem, of note, and did so at a
most critical point in our young lives. It sure
seemed (to me) to be taking it's time to show any
effects, but years later it was evident that,
while unbeknownst to me for almost 2 years, it
had indeed changed our lives and turned the tide
of battle! Here's the original
version of "Summer Love" as it flowed from my
heart so many years ago now - but the quip about
being blissfully ignored by mothers and enjoying
"protection from above", was added in 1994, with
the benefit of hindsight, as was the part about
me "knowing that one day she'd be my wife" - I
was not brave enough to admit that much then ... and realistically, with Jen 18, half-way
through Gr-12, that may well have had the
exact opposite effect than that which I was hoping and
praying for. |
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Summer
Love ...
( Remembering 3
Splendid Summers ...'71,'72,'73 )
As I
walked into that little store,
I turned ... our eyes met ... she smiled,
She transfixed me to the core ...
This beautiful young woman ... with the
face of a child.
For there she stood, smiling ever so softly at
me ...
Her eyes fixed upon me in a most disarming
gaze,
This lovely young mermaid from that
wondrous sea ...
She whom I'd seemingly lost in that relentless
maze,
Reappeared to me as through swirling ocean
mist ...
Chestnut golden hair cascading around her
shoulders bare,
I simply had no choice ... speechless, and
quite helpless to resist,
I stood there motionless ... enchanted ...
held captive by her stare !
Gracefully she now moved towards the sun ...
and following seemed the most natural thing for
me to do,
My legs regaining movement - trying hard not to
run ...
With her smile beckoning, out we went,
just us two.
Of course, I had completely forgot what I should
get,
As we left both through that door,
Somehow it seemed required that again we'd met
...
There in that dear little store?
You know, it felt I'd known her all my
life,
and as we walked on down to those streams,
Somehow, I just knew it then ... she'd be my
wife,
That most beautiful of love's most lovely dreams
!
True
love at first glance is very rare indeed,
And I could not explain it ... here by the sea,
For it felt like all of Heaven that day had
decreed,
That such a love should happen ... all at once,
to me.
So there I was, stung by cupids many arrows,
Perhaps all twelve of them in my heart,
Caring little about love's possible sorrows,
Simply thinking "Oh what a beautiful start"!
Beside me was this most enchanting of young
women,
And once again upon this day our paths had
crossed,
So, "surely", I felt, "this must be
love's omen"?
For just hours before ... I'd given her up as
lost.
 There
on the river's bank we sat and talked,
For quite some time - both pleasantly at
ease,
Later, quite unforced, we held hands and walked,
On the many paths past all those countless
trees.
With the milk money still in my hand,
We now made our way upon that bank,
And there upon the river's soft pleasant sand,
Our hearts knew that Heaven we should thank!
Later, that night under the moons soft pleasant
light,
We would dance ... and danced and danced and
danced,
There where true love's jazz band played all
night,
A mermaid cast love's spell on me and I
was entranced!
On we swayed, gently on our dancing floor,
Holding each other closely - tight,
Till my 16 year old heart could take no more,
Then out we went - into that African night
...
There amongst the swaying palms we walked,
Accompanied by distant strains of the tenor-sax,
There Jennifer and I stood and softly talked -
The warm sea breeze now at our backs.
Colorful Hibiscus flowers grew freely there,
On the moonlit banks of that dark stream,
And our love we felt we had to share ...
We shared such a lovely dream !
The
glowing moon shone bright above,
As we first kissed under that tall palm tree,
Knowing our young adult summer love -
Was good and clean ... and free!
I remember well ... as our eager lips drew near,
Our teenage hearts now beating fast ...
That I gently touched her ear ...
We made that moment last!
In the distance the dance band was playing our
song ...
Jennifer looked at me - moonlight gleaming in
her eyes,
Again we kissed - but now with passion burning
strong,
Passion that must burn on ... a flame
that never dies!
We
left that night by boat,
From that our first of many a dance,
gently down the river we did float,
So thankful for love's chance!
We hugged, we kissed, we bade goodnight,
Beside a small dark tree,
Under the moon's now gentle light ...
Just Jennifer and me.
As I lay there later in my bed,
My heart felt strong and warm,
Soft music still playing in my head,
Jennifer had taken me by storm !
I
slept that night a happy sleep,
Amid her siren's song,
In my heart it had found a home to keep,
And it's never sounded wrong.
Awakening ... all my dreaming done,
My heart overflowing with love,
I rushed to greet the rising sun ...
And my little turtle dove.
Again we sat ... we walked,
Happy and carefree,
We kissed ... we talked,
Just Jennifer and Me.
 For
days we walked and talked - always holding
hands,
We swam and romped there in the bubbling waves,
And ran and played along the beach's sands,
Then dried and dressed amongst those rocky
caves.
There, sheltered by the dunes we huddled,
Just us two - on nature's turf,
There too we kissed and cuddled,
While overlooking that endless pounding surf.
We were quite oblivious to all others,
I suppose that's perfectly normal for those in
love,
And blissfully ignored - even by our mothers ...
Now we know we had protection from above!
 In
a canoe we paddled daily up the streams,
Along the cliff's sheer side,
Tropical jungles seeing our tender dreams,
Had helped us there to hide.
Brightly colored birds flew overhead,
While we drifted there ... all alone,
White Arum lilies surrounded our floating bed,
Sweet Heaven's nature there did us own.
Two lovers ... cradled in our little shell,
My heart had wanted to shout ...
"This match was made in Heaven, Not in Hell"
... Of that I had no doubt!
For
only could Heaven have sent ...
Such a sweet angel to me,
A helping hand it had us lent ...
Then set our Spirits free!
Two lovers ... floating amongst the flowers,
Both entranced ... in "Cupid's spell",
And I held captive by her powers ...
Oh, She knew her part so well !
Sighing we left each other's arms,
And I started out to row ...
Still dazzled by her many charms,
The blazing sun now fast dipping low.
 As
the sun sank behind the jungle's hills ...
Africa's night was fast starting now,
Menacing shadows dancing upon the water's
frills,
We knew we must get back somehow!
Arriving on familiar banks again,
Our families we there did meet,
And amongst the noise of drinking men,
Our suppers we were given to eat.
But really, we had no need for food,
For we could have lived on love alone,
And for sweethearts still in such a dizzy mood
...
Beside the river waited our lovely throne.
 For
at the edge of that watery trench,
At the meeting of two streams,
Upon our favorite gray old bench,
We shared so many happy dreams!
The remaining days went by too fast,
For two sweethearts in that pleasant land ...
Wishing our dream could forever last,
We pleaded for time quite still to stand.
But alas, soon back home we would be going,
Summer love now forced to wait another year,
My heart broke ... it's sadness showing,
... as it cried a little tear.
(C) 1974 Ian Eloff,
all rights reserved.
1994, Illustrated as a surprise for Jen,
with minor revisions.
Canoe trips up into these pristine canyons from
that busy seaside, afforded us total privacy.
It was time to get to know each other - just
the two of us, nature, beauty, birds and
flowers.
So, every afternoon, while parents slept, Jen
and I would disappear upstream, in our canoe,
into these mountains and Jungles, and talk
happily, for hours, as we guided our canoe
through
tranquil waters, reluctantly returning only as
sunset loomed, for supper with our families
again.
There we'd disappear into a beautiful world of
our own, where only love and happiness existed.
We rarely encountered anyone else - it seems
they all wanted rather to go to the sandy
beaches.
And just when you cannot go any further in the
canoe, this real treat awaits the 2 lovers ...
their very own private "Mermaid's-pool"
Far from civilization, amid exquisite beauty,
surrounded by White Cala Lilies (Aurum Lillies)
& the Knysan Loeri, in their native habitat,
Three glorious
summers ...
then suddenly it was all over.
 Jennifer
and I, being young sweethearts and living at
opposite ends of the country, just had to settle
for the few times we could see each other ...
which was the 3 weeks over Christmas in
each of the summers of 1971, 1972
and 1973 when our two families paths
crossed during summer vacation. But that
soon changed. Upon graduating from high school,
I was drafted into the air-force - South
Africa was at war! As a result I knew that I
would likely not get to see her during that time
at all. For the next 2 Summer holidays (Christmas
holidays, in the southern Hemisphere) that she and her family spent at the
Wilderness - I would not be
there! It was naive to think that other guys
would not want to take advantage of my absence,
in that most romantic place, with a Mermaid so
desirable, so I kind of panicked! I mean really
... In the time I was to be away at war, she was
a 17 year old absolutely gorgeous (and
passionate) Mermaid, just entering Grade 12, to
be followed by her freshman year at University.
She would thus be turning 18 and 19 ... and with
me nowhere in sight! For me then, these were
not exactly great odds to be facing in the game
of love! Realistically, most people
would agree with that. And, right on cue, I
discovered her mother had "jumped the gun" and
engineered an introduction to a rich
school-friend of Prince Andrew, and he lived
just a few miles away from Jennifer, in a MANSION,
complete with Dad's chauffeur driven Mercedes,
fancy cars and Penthouse at the seaside in Cape
Town. Even worse, he had free-license from her
mother to pursue Jen's heart.
It seemed that our
Summer love story was destined to be just one of
those beautiful memories, a precious part of
our childhood - one that was destined to live on
only in our fondest memories, but not in
reality. There was no email or Cell-phones back
in 1971, and Long-distance calls and air travel
were very expensive.
"The End" of our 3-Summers-long
love-story.
To even the odds a
little, I traveled down to Cape Town (with
some money I had saved) just before my 18th
birthday (when I was to enter the
air-force) so that I could at least be with
Jennifer one last time. Her parents let
me see her for just a long-weekend, during
which time she showed me her home town and we
romanced each other, this time on her turf.
We were, as always, sweethearts, best friends
and Soul mates. But a few days go by so very very
fast when you are in love ... way too fast! And
then, "just like that", it was all over. Had it
all been just a dream? The brutality of adult
life had abruptly ended this beautiful chapter
in our young lives. For Jennifer the last half
of grade 12, then
university, lay ahead, while the isolation of
being drafted to be part of the wartime effort
had effectively sidelined me. My youth had ended
and Jennifer's was fast drawing to a close.
These were indeed formidable obstacles to our
love at a very crucial juncture in our young
lives. Now our once peaceful colony was showing
signs of tumultuous change. Realistically most
agreed then (and now) that "The End" would not have been
a totally unexpected outcome for our Summer romance ...
the complications of adult life were upon us,
and these had "kidnapped" our youth! So it was
that Jennifer and I, lost contact - not that I
did not try! Today, Jennifer is still
chauffeur-driven everywhere in Mercedes Limos. I
could not afford those. Well, life's not always
fair, but it does often afford us precious
moments that we should never ever forget, for if
we do, we become hardened, and lose our
humanity. We have to take the good with the bad,
the happy with the sad. However, as in every
Fairy-tale of note, surprises are allowed and
then we find that little glimmers of hope
(sometimes) creep in where only despair seems to
live. But always, if there is to be any happy
ever-after, that tiny, fragile, flickering
flame-of-hope, simply refuses to die!
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You see, simply put, I loved Jennifer ... I always
have, and I always will.
The problem was, I did not manage to find
a way of telling her exactly how I felt about her,
until it was too late for her to be able to reply - and
even then, events (and her mother)
further conspired against us and our young love,
ensuring that there was to be no reply.
We met 51
Christmases ago (Dec-1971) and clearly Jennifer is still my
"magnificent obsession".
Trivia: (1) The Power-boat that ferried us
to (and from) Romantic dances on the river-banks
(pic above) was called "Jabula".
Imagine our smiles when, eventually, some 40 years
later, we found out that "Jabula" is the Zulu word for
... "Happiness".
(2) Also, back in 1971/2/3 this area of South Africa
was just a beautiful Holiday (and Honeymoon) destination
famous for it's
Beaches along the warm Indian Ocean, as well as it's
Lakes and Salt Marshes, it's mountains and it's rivers.
It's the native home
of the magnificent Calla Lily (Aurum lily) as well as to
abundant birdlife. Back then few people cared about the
upper-reaches of
the river, the preferred to water-ski on it as it dammed
up just before entering the sea. Well, some 2 decades
later it was all
made into a National Park, Power-boats were outlawed on
it's river, and to preserve it's natural beauty, only
Canoes allowed.
Couples travel from all over the world
(Back-packers and honeymooners, most often) to enjoy the Beauty and
Romance of it all.
Jen and I could not be happier! This place, that was so
pivotal to our young love, is going to do the same for
everyone that visits.
As you have read, it's an experience we will never
forget as long as we live! We encourage other young
couples to explore it too.
And apparently, they do ...
Fantasies can come true
... it could happen to you.
Jennifer's French
wedding ring dates back to 1704. It's part of a sad,
unrequited Love-story
Pictured here celebrating (candid photo
of Jen savoring a sip of Wine) at a dinner-dance on the
night of her wedding to me, 7yrs later.
Against her Mother's
wishes, Jen returned to Africa from N. America
(and she was ultimately disowned for that) and we were married.
She was given no support for her wedding - not even a
wedding dress, but none of that mattered to this lovely
lady ... True Love did!
Here's a photo from Jen's (1st) African
Wedding, one of her 3 official weddings on 3 continents.
Now
there's an intriguing story to tell!
Once upon a time, before this Wilderness jewel
was a National-park, more often than not, we had it all
to ourselves - or maybe it would be more accurate to
say: "This magical place had Jen and I all to itself for
3 summers". Either way, we built up so many beautiful
lasting memories here, in this, our special place, and
we fantasized that one day, we would be able to live in
a place like this. Well fantasies almost never come true
- that is, until 7 years ago, 34yrs after first meeting.
Ironically, exactly because of Jen's birth-mother's
relentless attacks on us and our family, we simply
belatedly eloped, we all just ran away, disappeared,
Now we're living our fantasy; our fondest dreams
finally fulfilled, 51y later, together, still madly in love,
surrounded by nature's beauty in a pristine S American jungle, a gentle land "far, far away", happily
ever after!
What's left to say but
that we are both quite sure it's all a case of "Regallo
de Dios", for which we are both truly grateful!
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This may/may not
work well for all, but if it does, it's nice:
Africa's Snow-White Synopsis (PPT - Powerpoint narrated
slide show)
MISC YouTube Videos:
Click on these YouTube videos to experience a
little of our Canoe adventures:
(1)
Short, grainy and jerky - but the color
and sound is fairly good
(2)
Longer, more professional and detailed, but the colors
are off, not green enough.
(3)
Nice overall, well narrated and includes Beautiful
footage of a very "Romantic Hideaway" |
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The
ecstasy, dangers, agony and rewards of falling in love with
