Sometime in 2017, Tony and I visited son #2 and his family in the US of A. All we wanted was to be with them for a month since we hardly saw each other.
But they had plans to treat us to adventures we never experienced before. One of these was a six-day road trip around California with son #2 driving his dad and mom. He took time off from his punishing schedule as ICU/Pulmonary physician for this trip.
It was a leisurely drive, stopping for food when the tummies growled. And a bonus to this bonus trip was passing through missions, which was right up Tony’s alley as a history buff. He had read all about the 21 missions the Spanish Franciscans established in Alta California from 1769–1833. These missions are a 6000-mile stretch from San Diego to San Francisco (eventually known as the California Mission Trail). These facts were supplied by Tony.
One of those missions was San Juan Bautista (founded in 1797) in San Benito County. Naturally, we had to walk through the halls of this very old structure. I took photos and so did son #2.
Eight years later, grace takes me by surprise. Son #2 sends me this photo from his camera. Tony would have loved to see it.
I researched on this mission immediately and remembered what Tony said, which I conveniently archived (or sent to my trash bin). Mission San Juan Bautista was the 15th of the Spanish missions established in present-day California.
So am I now a student of history? Not in the same league as Tony was. Okay, no.
But his knowledge of and love for history (inherited by all three sons and my only grandson) never failed to awe me.
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