Even more often these days (and nights) my thoughts are of John. I am guessing that anyone who spent very much 'quality time' with John came to learn of his dreams. The main one was to have a shop, a mechanical repair shop, of his own. This would variously be expected to appear 'when he retired' or 'some years from now'. I have always encouraged John in this dream.
John's mechanical work was an art form. The stereotypical Zambian mechanic can make anything run, and I also know some of those, but John did not fit that stereotype. He certainly could make anything run, and he was a constant amazement to me, but always his priority was to return it to standard. That meant he wanted it to be the way it was supposed to be. Running was not good enough—it had to be right! I remember one time when the alternator from someone's car had failed. John disassembled it, and using the little multimeter from Canadian Tire that I had given him, he proceeded to understand how the thing worked. Then he did some adjustments, reassembled it, and it worked! My Isuzu is a story all on its own. It had been driven without the benefit of coolant before it came into my possession. As a result, the engine had seized, and, presumably, been repaired. However, the repairs had not been accomplished, and I (read John) was left to deal with the results. He took the engine apart so many times and replaced so many head-gaskets that our friend Jack used to tease us, "Better throw away those bolts and install a zipper. It'll give you quicker access!" But John did not give up. Eventually, with new sleeves, new pistons, new rings (and way too many of my new dollars)... it was right, and by the final year of our time in Zambia, it was running very well indeed. Thanks, John.
I believed if John ever set up a mechanical repair shop, he would be a great success. The demand for mechanical repairs done well is unending. So, we would chat and dream. This past summer we pushed it further—we developed some schemes! The only filling station in Kalomo (a nearby town) had closed. The BP (British Petroleum) franchise was rescinded due to poor management on the part of the franchise holders. This created an opportunity, and John could see this as well as I. He had already discussed the possibilities with officials from BP, however, it did not look promising. BP was hoping to have someone take over the old filling station property from the owners and begin again. John understood how bitter such a transaction could be, and was unwilling to fight that battle. So, he traveled to Livingstone to discuss with another petroleum company the possibility of establishing a new franchise in Kalomo. He and I went to the town council and were successful in obtaining an assignment of an ideal plot of land for a new station. We began discussions with still another petroleum company in Lusaka. Our conversations, emails and letters continued into September and October. It was exciting to hear his excitement.
But now... schemes, dreams and John are gone.
