A Story You Won't Believe (Because I Didn't Either)

Sometimes the wildest things happen, and you've just got to smile.

My view of Scotland’s “Golf Coast” from the train on the way to St. Andrews. (Photo credit: me!)

My main mode of travel between cities in Scotland was the national rail system. From Edinburgh to St. Andrews, it was 22.10 pounds for a train ride that took just over an hour. The trains were on-time, convenient, and clean.

Their main problem? A lack of luggage space. When I stepped onto the train at Edinburgh’s Waverly Station, I had to shove my suitcase into a rack that was already overflowing. My golf clubs had no chance of fitting, and me and the only other man on in my car with golf clubs were left to scramble as the train started moving.

We scratched our heads for a minute and eventually decided to place our clubs where bikes are generally supposed to go. It took about five minutes to negotiate the belts and the latches to ensure that our golf clubs would be secure on the train ride.

After the man and I had successfully (and clumsily) put everything in order, we sat down. We didn’t have assigned seats, so I ended up facing away from him across the aisle. We were close enough that we could still communicate, though, and talked for a few minutes about what we were each doing with our clubs headed north.

I never got the man’s name, but I learned that he was about 60 or so and was on the way to Aberdeen for a work trip. He was bringing his clubs just in case he got some time to sneak away.

After about 20 minutes, the man wished me well and started reading the paper he had brought along for the ride. I turned and stared at the beautiful countryside that was flying by the train window.

You’d think the story would end there

There was one other problem with the Scottish Railway System. The first train on the day of my flight back to the United States would deposit me at the Edinburgh Airport exactly two hours before my flight was scheduled to depart.

After my first flight’s debacles, I was not going to take any chances.

So, I took the train back to Edinburgh the night before and stayed in an “airport” hotel. I think the Edinburgh Airport Travelodge can only brand itself as an “airport” hotel because it is just off of the runway’s flight path.

It is not, as one would think, a short jaunt from the terminal. It’s a five minute bus ride away from the airport, nestled in an office park that’s tucked in a neighborhood.

To get to the airport on the morning of my flight, I decided to take the 7:00 am bus to the airport. The bus stop was on a nondescript four-lane road outside of the Travelodge, about a five minute walk from its main entrance.

Here’s the bus stop in question. It’s perfectly nondescript (Credit: Google Maps)

As I sidled up to the bus stop with my luggage at 6:55 am, I saw one man standing there.

He asked me, “How’d you play?”

In my morning daze I groggily replied with, “I’m sorry, what?”

My query was answered with, “You don’t remember me, do you? I’m the man from the train.”

It was the same man I had negotiated golf bags and had a 20-minute conversation with, 10 days earlier. I was flabbergasted.

I could hardly speak. What are the odds that we end up at a random bus stop at 6:56 in the morning, 10 days later? It’s especially wild because he wasn’t even taking my bus. He was early for the bus that followed mine.

Unlike on the train, we exchanged email addresses before parting. The next time Jim is in the United States, he’s got a golf game with me, guaranteed. The same goes for me the next time I’m in Scotland.

Some things you just can’t explain

I really don’t understand why certain things happen or why certain things do (or don’t) work out. I’m not alone in this feeling and it has plagued the vast majority of people for thousands of years.

I just have to live with the unexplainable, and that’s ok. I’ve become more and more comfortable with this in recent years, as I spent most of my early teenage years choosing to worry about anything and everything.

One of my favorite quotes has become, “life is funny.” Because it is. We just have to embrace that hands that we’re dealt and go from there.

High and low, good and bad, I do my best to take everything in stride and laugh as much as I can. This attitude has helped me as I’ve travelled alone throughout the summer and dealt with the various objects that college has thrown at me.

Even though this story wasn’t a negative one, it did just remind me to smile about the crazy, unexplainable, and wild things that happen in life. You really can’t beat them.

Of course, I can’t do it alone, which is why I’m so grateful for my family and the people that surround me. I consider myself an exceptionally lucky person, and thank God for both the highs and the lows.

With everything in life, I just do what I’ve gotta do.

---

Questions, comments, ideas, and feedback can be directed to jpatterson@unc.edu. You can find me on Twitter @JakeWPatt or my Instagram @Loopers_Line. If you really want to get to know me, check out my LinkedIn.

Thank you to Bethany Phillis for serving as my creative project mentor and to Caroline Maness for designing Looper’s Line’s logo.