Two Roads Diverged...

So far I have done and experienced some pretty cool things during my time here in Puerto Rico. However, even though the beauty of the islands is surreal, my favorite experiences have come from interacting with the locals. Therefore, the highlight of my trip happened the other day when I ran across this old Puerto Rican man fishing.
I had just finished a nice swim to a secluded island and back (about 6 minutes one way, not too far) and was walking back to the little town nearby. That is when I saw the old man fishing at the end of this old, rundown pier. At first I thought I would just keep walking and not bother him, or go sit and meet these two girls that were sitting on another pier to make more connections. After a short debate, I decided to hang out with the old man. He was fishing through a hole in the pier with just a string and hook. He immediately greeted me, and I sat down to chat. Of course, it was all in Spanish, but that made it even better because I want to improve my bilingual skills. The man, whom I discovered his name to be Juan, was generous to speak slowly because he knew I was learning. We covered the basics of family, age, where we have lived and travel, other stuff, but then I asked what he thought of the tourists. At first he said that we are all the same because we all end up in the same place, the earth. Then he said that some foreigners are crazy because they don't realize the dangers of the island, especially the sharks and barracudas in the water.
"For example", he said, "I see many "gringos" swim from island to island, and that is crazy."
(I am sure he had just watched me doing that but did not realize it had been me. I found that a bit funny, but I didn't tell him that was probably me he was referring to.)
He then went on to say more about the fact that we all end up in the dirt. I then asked if he thought there was life after that. He said no, not really. I proceeded to say that I believed it is true that we end up in the dirt, but if we have Jesus living in us then we will live forever. We talked a little more about that subject, and I just loved that fact that God gave me the opportunity to talk about Him with this old Puerto Rican man named Juan.
I am not really sure, but I think our conversation lasted about 30 minutes. I am glad that I made the right choice to go sit with the man over my other options. It was such a rewarding experience.