And thinking, what a fabulous life.

It's Feb. 9. And I'm killing time. Which is all right. That's what I want to be doing. At the airport just outside Cagliari, the capital city of Sardinia. Around 9 in the morning. And my flight to Beauvais, north of Paris, won't take off until 1 in the afternoon. Four hours to kill. I like that. Time to relax. To not be in a hurry. Time to sip caffe machiato and eat a croissant filled with apricot marmalade. And I have the opportunity to observe all sorts of people. Fellow travelers. Some in a hurry. But not me, thank gawd. Because I allow myself time to slow down and savor. Everything. Each moment. I'm trying to be funny when I declare that I'm killing time. Instead, I'm observing. The goings-on. Around me. In this tiny, out-of-the-way part of the world. It's a bright, sunny day. A couple just sat down at a table a few feet from me. They have croissant rolls, too. And caffe machiato. A special coffee I had never tasted. Until I arrived in Sardinia for the first time two years ago. Used to be that I lived without coffee. Almost all of my life. Now I imbibe. Sort of regularly. Several times a week. It's the Italian thing to do. I'm experimenting. Trying to act a little like a true blue Italian. Means drinking espresso almost daily when in Sardinia. I haven't fully achieved 'daily' without fail. Yet. And maybe never will. But I have learned to appreciate coffee. To make it part of my living ritual. Took 70-some years to reach this point. Goes to show that one is never too old to learn. New ways. New tricks. New beverage. And to fully appreciate it all. No faking. That's an advantage of having an Italian true love. She introduces me to so very much. To Italian ways. Amazing. The doors that love tends to open. Never dreamed I'd be living half of the year on an island in the Mediterranean Sea. Or sitting at an airport in Sardinia. Enjoying life. In a new dimension. Sipping caffe machiato. Munching on a croissant. And thinking, what a fabulous life. --Jim Broede