Traveling long distances was exhausting. The roads seemed to go on and on—there was no end in sight.
The 4×4 Rover was quite a sight to behold. But covered in dirt from the dusty roads, it had long since deserved a wash. After all, it had a life of its own. Its sole purpose was to serve its driver, stay in working order, and keep him happy. It hadn’t been serviced in a long time. Still, it held on, running at full capacity regardless of the road conditions.
Manufactured five years ago, it had won the award for best SUV design of the year in the U.S. that year. It was overjoyed by this; it was in high spirits. His driver had dated many women and had taken almost all of them out in the SUV. Rover was very upset by this and couldn’t help but feel jealous of his driver. But after all, he was devoted to service; his driver’s happiness should have made him happy too. But emotions don’t listen to duty.
When it rained, the wipers worked, and he cruised down the road at full speed without skidding; his tires were also top-quality.
Then the driver let out a deep sigh. He was gray-haired, in his early 60s, handsome, with a white beard, and well-groomed. He was a native of Virginia. No one could beat him at choosing nice clothes. He knew the saying “Clothes make the man” well and used his style to impress women.
Unable to make a go of any profession, he had eventually started gambling on cockfights. Unfortunately, the roosters he bet on were defeated one after another, and he had run out of his last savings.
As he was driving down the road, a charming woman hitchhiking caught his eye. He gave her a ride in his Rover. She was in her late twenties—a slender, approachable young woman with blonde hair and blue eyes. Her attractive and expressive face hadn’t escaped his notice.
“Where are you headed?”
“To Pennsylvania State College.”
“I’m heading that way, too. What are you doing there?”
“I’m a history professor.”
“Wow, do professors ever hitchhike?”
“Well, I’m not your typical professor. I love adventure and travel.”
“Okay, okay, I get it.”
“Who are you?”
-I’m a traveler wandering the roads, trying to find myself along the way.
-Sweetheart, what exactly are you looking for?
-If I knew what I was looking for, I’d have found it by now.
-Well then, you’ve got your work cut out for you, my friend. Come be my guest at the university.
-Sure, why not? The roads are waiting for me. Maybe what I’m looking for is at the university.
They were passing through the heart of Philadelphia. Everywhere was lush with green trees.
“Green, green, so green”
State-of-the-art villas stretched out on both sides, basking in the greenery to their heart’s content. The air was very fresh. Beautiful, large pools peered out charmingly from the gardens, as if they were about to shout, “Come swim here!” The roads were wide. There wasn’t much traffic.
Then they took the bypass roads, heading toward Penn State.
-It got dark.
-Yes, we arrived right on time.
-The campus is very close by.
-Oh, that’s great.
-Come on over—I’ll put you up. Stay for a few days.
-I don’t know! I don’t want to be a burden to you.
-You won’t be. I’m teaching two courses this semester: History of American Literature and History of Ancient Philosophy. Those are my areas of expertise.
-That’s very interesting. We’ll have to chat sometime.
-Let me show you to the guest room. I’ll take care of you like the apple of my eye.
-I’m going to go to my room and rest. I’m so tired.
-Good night. I have an early class tomorrow morning. You can use the kitchen for breakfast.
He was very tired. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he fell into a deep sleep.
He woke up ten hours later. He figured the woman must have gone to class. There was breakfast in the kitchen. He ate his fill. He felt the warmth of the sun streaming in through the house’s large window.
He wanted to go outside, but he didn’t have a key to the house.
Cell phones hadn’t been invented yet back then. If you don’t have a cell phone, you don’t have any worries. The artificial lives we lead under the yoke of social media—people you’re constantly talking to on the phone even when you could meet face-to-face. Not having a cell phone is a great freedom. You can be alone with yourself; life stops being a stage for performance and show. There’s plenty of time left for reading, contemplation, and wandering alone.
“I’ll walk around campus a bit and then head home,” he thought. With that resolve, he closed the door and began walking toward campus. Ten minutes later, he reached campus. Everything was lush and green. Squirrels were scampering about. Yellow, green, and red leaves were swirling in the wind. The weather was neither too hot nor too cold. “Knocking on heaven’s door?”
He saw all kinds of old, spacious buildings. Students with backpacks were walking across campus, entering the buildings as if they had no time to spare, as if nothing existed but classes and books.
He remembered his own college years. He had barely graduated from high school in Virginia. He had never even considered college; he’d just hung out in the neighborhood. He’d charmed every girl in the neighborhood, without even distinguishing one from the other. After all, he was handsome and friendly, despite his aimless ways. Isn’t that strange? A quote by Milan Kundera kept running through his mind: “It’s not how many women you’ve been with that matters, but how many you could have been with.” Isn’t there a saying in Turkish too: “Bachelorhood is a kingdom”?
Then he spotted a massive library. He went inside. There were so many books; every table was completely full. “What hardworking students,” he thought. “They’re nothing like me—I barely even graduated from high school.”
An hour had passed. He had trouble finding his way home. Still, after wandering around, he found his way back. Oh, the female historian was home. He hadn’t expected this at all; he’d prepared himself to wait anxiously at the door. He rang the doorbell.
-Come in.
-You’re home—is the class over?
-It was a 45-minute class. This week’s topic is Socrates.
-So, what happened to Socrates?
-He was one of the first philosophers to go down in history. He would often talk to passersby on the street and help them understand themselves through Socratic questioning.
-Does he have any books? -Socrates never wrote anything. His student Aristotle put his ideas and experiences into writing.
-What’s your favorite quote?
– “Happiness is a choice.” Indeed, once we choose this, we can stop getting caught up in life’s dramas and live our lives happily and virtuously. Today I had my students write an essay about this quote. This isn’t a memorization exercise. I want them to think deeply about these topics as well.
-It sounds like a fun class.
-I make sure they learn the material in class. Of course, I also encourage them to do their own research.
-We’ll get along well.
-You can stay here as long as you like.