Fighter (Anthony Rizzo)

Trying New Things

Anthony

"Isn't it a bit ironic to be spending Thanksgiving in Thailand" Cam asks as we go to get Cubbie from the gate at the airport. Hopefully he was being good on the flight over.

"Not really, we're still thankful" I shrug.

"I'm always thankful. Thanksgiving is supposed to be the celebration of America" she laughs.

"Well then I guess we're having a non-American Thanksgiving" I chuckle. We pick up Cubbie and head to the hotel to get settled in.

"Woah this place is beautiful" she gasps as we look around the place. The room was right by the water and had a perfect view of the jungle. The four seasons resort was no joke. We let Cubbie loose and he runs around to inspect the place. We had two weeks to explore Thailand, and even then I'm not sure if we will have enough time to see everything we want to. As for today, we were going to catch up on sleep because jet lag is terrible.

"I don't think I can sleep, I'm so excited" Cam says as we lay in bed.

"I know, there's so much I want to do" I admit. Eventually the ever growing husky pup find us on the bed and curls up at the end of it. We all fall asleep really excited for the next day.

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The first full day we decide to hit up the city of Bangkok and explore. That's easier said than done because unlike Chicago where the actual tourist part of the city is quite small, wherever you turn here it's like your in a picture. It was just so beautiful.

"This place is amazing, how'd you know about this place" she asks as we walk around.

"When I was going through treatment I had one of those moments, I figured out that life isn't always going to be like a fairy tale. It's something you have to take day by day and live with no regrets. One day I made of list of places I wanted to go before I die. I wouldn't call it a bucket list but more of a to do list. This was at the top of it, when you said you wanted to travel I knew this was the place we would go. It's so amazing" I sigh.

"It is, and I made a list much like the one you did. Both times" she mentions.

"What's on the list from the last one" I wonder.

"I want a family. You know, full of people who has to love you no matter how bad you mess up because they have to. Accepts all the imperfections. I want kids who are happy and healthy and I would make sure they never would have to worry about the things I did growing up. I would remind them that it doesn't matter what other people think of them, just what they think of them. I want them to feel like they have a purpose, that there's a reason they're here on earth. I would make sure that they know everything they need to in order to be successful no matter how hard it is for me to tell them, because life is going to be hard but it's going to be worth it. Then one day when we're old and our children have grown up to be these amazing people who are still learning, I can look back on my life and be proud that we were able to make the best out of a shitty situation" she finishes. I stop walking and she stops a little while after myself.

"When do you want to start a family" I wonder.

"I don't know. I don't have the timing thing figured out yet. I much rather let it happen and be happy when it does. I mean we're not even married yet and you're in the prime of your career. I don't care how it happens, as long as it happens with you" she admits.

"See that's why I love you" I say tucking her under my arms and continuing our tour of Bangkok. Eventually it gets to dinner time and we stop to rest our feet at a nice restaurant. I wasn't sure what to get so I just got the same thing she did and sat down to eat the food.

"What is this... exactly" I ask.

"Ahan Thai, the national cuisine" she states.

"Okay... and what's that" I ask and she laughs.

"It's a bunch of things, it's meant to have something from each pallet of taste. You know; sweet, spicy, bitter, all that stuff" she explains. I watch her as she picks a few things up with her chop sticks and I copy her motions. I was a bit skeptical at first but once I started I couldn't stop.

"This is so good" I groan as I nearly finish the plate in ten minutes.

"You shouldn't be so scared of something that's different" she mentions and I raise my eyebrow.

"And what makes you think I'm afraid of things that are different" I counter.

"Because it took you a hundred years to even try the food. It took me explaining to you what it is for you to eat it" she explains.

"Okay true. But everyone is afraid of new and different things" I defend.

"Yeah, and that sucks for them. This place has so much to offer yet people are afraid to open their eyes. Look around, you can't find this stuff in Chicago. Mr. Maxwell wanted us to travel to remember that there's so much more than what we know, but the only way to find those things out is to experience them for yourself. Sure it's pretty here, but it's so much more than that. The culture, this meal, the way of life, it's all different, and we can't embrace it if we're scared of something that isn't like we know. Our comfort zones aren't going to be found here, the best things are found outside of our comfort zones."

I watch her as she talks and ask myself how she knows these things. Every day she reminds me of how unique she is and every day she surprises me with her knowledge. She wanted to enjoy life but she wanted me to enjoy it too.

"If I was to ever lose motivation or purpose... what would you tell me" I wonder.

"I would tell you that you're too good for that. That as a person you should be one of the last people questioning who you are. You represent so many great things; kindness, compassion, courage, strength, love, so many great qualities that put you above others. But you would never see yourself above others because you know that in order to move forward we have to move forward together and that can't be done if you believe yourself to be above or below someone. I would remind you of how you got here, the hardship and how you got through it. You know the first day we met and I was so surprised that you came over to talk to me. Never met you before, there could had been so many things wrong with me that might have ended badly for you, but you took a chance on me. That same curiosity and trust in humanity is what makes you so special. Your motivation is your ability to help people, even if it's just putting a smile on someone's face. It really does make a difference. As for your purpose, you're a believer. You took a team who lost 101 games a few years back and helped them win their first championship. You believe there is a answer to so many questions about cancer and are constantly working towards making this world a better place to live in. You have high morals which I highly respect. If you were to ever change or lose yourself I don't know what I would do."

"I don't deserve you" I admit.

"You deserve so much more" she laughs.

"I don't want more. You're perfect for me" I reply pulling her close. She rests her head on my shoulder as her hair falls into my lap.

"Love you" she tells me.

"Love you too."