Respite (1)

Chapter Eight. ROMAN RESPITE

Again I was involved in a long sea journey. Riding the
Navy vessel we stayed close to the land until we crossed
over to the Island of Cyprus. Just plain tired, I didn't
reconnoiter this island while our ship was bringing in
more supplies. I stayed at an inn near the harbor and
mainly rested in between bouts of good brew.

Off again, across open sea, we eventually reached and
weaved our way amongst a goodly number of Greek
Islands. Then there was a cry from one of the sailors,
we were approaching Cape Sounio--the very far southern
tip of the Greek mainland. At the far edge of the cape
we could see the really, really old Temple of Poseidon.
Built centuries ago, somehow miraculously still standing,
but tottering in some places, the temple remained a
spectacular sight.

It had long been a welcome view to seafarers returning to
Greece. Poseidon was the Greek god of the sea. He also
was the god of earthquakes, thought to have raised the many
Greek islands. I thanked Poseidon for allowing me to safely
traverse all the seas over my many years traveling from one
post to another. Now Poseidon was beckoning us to a safe
harbor at the port of Piraeus, just south of Athens.

Finally I showed some small disobedience, in that I decided
not to take a mandated Navy ship back to Italy. Leaving
my big travel chests with a Navy officer, who would see
that they reached the Praetorian Camp in Rome, I headed
off towards Corinth. I decided to return via the Bay of Corinth,
across to Italy, up to Naples, and on to my family in Ostia.
This meant taking a commercial passenger ship, and
essentially following the old route I took years ago, when
a young student traveling with my tutor.

So remembering this, it was naturally appropriate to look-up
my good friend Quint. I found him at Corinth's Stoa, where
he was now a well-known philosopher. Though Qunt's pate
was now balding, I recognized him. As for me, though brown
from all of Judaea's sun, he instantly knew who I was. After
all the years in between, we seemed like old friends who had
never been separated.

Inviting me to his home, introducing me to his wife and
family, he invited me to stay with him. I spent a lovely week
overlooking the bay. It was a stroke of luck that I had found
him in Corinth, because he was making plans soon to move to
Carthage--a great city in the Province of Africa. It seemed that
the Stoa at Carthage was seeking to expand its teaching faculty.
Now a famed Stoic philosopher, Quint had been invited to join
the Carthage Stoa.

During the visit, I talked a little about what I might do after I
retired from the Praetorian Guard. After all the assignments, all
the traveling, I had less than a year left before my contract with
the Praetorians expired and I would be allowed a pension. So
what next? I had to consider that life didn't stop at that point,
but I was at loose ends as to what I might do during the rest of
my life.

It helped talking over these personal concerns with Quint. He
was a good, wise man who carefully advised me to look within
myself, focus on my natural inclinations and interests, and then
follow their course as they may take me. This seemed quite a
task ahead of me as I headed out towards Ostia and Rome.