Author's note: The names of the boys and their families have been changed to protect their privacy.

Part VI

       The PTA president of our school worked for an airline as a flight attendant.  She invited Jason and I to visit her at Los Angeles International Airport( LAX), where he would have the opportunity to board an commercial airplane for the first time in his life.

        We arrived at LAX and hustled over to the gate.  The plane was still being prepared for its trip to New York City.  We received permission to board the plane early and headed, with my
friend, to the first class section. I liked that.

        Jason had that look of wonderment on his face as he looked around the empty plane.  We toured the entire craft from back to front, peeked into the cockpit, spoke briefly with the co-pilot.  and enjoyed a refreshing soft drink before disembarking.   We marked the visit with a picture.

        After we exited the plane, we stayed around to watch the real passengers go on board and waited until it took off for New York. Once again I savored the moment, watching Jason  enjoy this fun trip.

        When I signed up to be a mentor, I knew this was a non-paying, volunteer job.  But I have to tell you money could not buy the feelings I had as I watched Jason enjoy himself.   The idea I could provide him with a routine visit to the airport and he could get such pleasure from it was delightful. I was convinced more than ever mentoring would now be a important part of my life.

        Weekly, Jason continued to mention his impending move and I had no idea if any given Wednesday would be our last.  This dragged on until the end of June, 1995, when his family moved to Riverside County. I had been setting Jason up for this day by explaining we would still stay in touch, either by phone or mail.  The idea of commitment and consistency in the relationship remained important.

        He finally did move and I felt a void in my life.  I realize I was only a mentor, but over the past five months we had formed a pretty strong relationship and I missed our weekly meetings.

        That summer I had eye surgery and took time after the operation to rest.  I thought of how Jason might be doing at his new home and if we would see each other again. Sharon had said he would call when they were settled and much to my surprise that call came in beginning of August.

        I arranged to pick Jason up from his cousins house in Los Angeles and spend the day with him.  Many things can change in eight weeks.  First, when I went to pick him up on a bright August morning I almost did not recognize him.  His hair was shorter and he wore oversized clothes. But soon he flashed his mischievous smile and things began to feel familiar.

        Unfortunately our reunion got off to a sour start.  Jason wanted his cousin to come along with us.  I said no, mainly because our time together would be limited from now on and I wanted us to spend as much quality time together as we could.

        For the next half hour he sulked.  As we made our way to Griffith Park in Los Angeles he slowly relaxed and we actually started to have a normal conversation.

        We went to a train display and walked around the huge locomotives. We eventually ended up at the famous Griffith Park carousel and rode the wooden horses.  All the while, I was trying to find out how he is enjoying his new home.  His monosyllabic answers didn't reveal much, but I gathered he was o.k. with his new place.  When I dropped him back off at his cousin's, I reminded Jason to stay in touch.

        Months went by before we spoke again.  His phone had been disconnected and I had no way to contact him. Then one evening, out of the blue, the telephone rang and it was Jason.

        That call made my evening...