The "Faces of Strangers #12" Story

Paolo working on his jewelry.

It was an ordinary day.  Standing in the Murano Glass store in Marina Royale on the island of St. Martin talking with Paolo.  Neatest guy who, along with his wife, owns and runs the business that sells just about anything from picture frames to collectibles to jewelry made from Murano Glass. Carol and I have purchased a few pieces from the his store over the last 10 or so years.  Murano Glass is made on a tiny island off the coast of Venice, Italy.  As Carol and I talked with Paolo about Italy, he told us he was born in Rome and his wife was born in Venice.  I told him that Venice was one of my favorite stops while visiting Italy a few years ago and that if we ever made our way back to Italy, I want to stay a few nights on the island.  He told us that he and his family travel every year back to Italy to visit with their extended family and to view the current Murano selections.  We also talked about the concerns of global warming on the islands of Venice and Murano and he assured us that there is a method that can be used to prevent the island from being inundated with water.  Paolo told us that he is closing his shop on St. Martin soon and moving to Los Angeles with his wife and daughter so that his daughter can go to school in the United States. 

Paolo showing me his classic car shirt.

 He has a brother who lives in Seattle, Washington and he will be closer to him as well.  His business is offered for sale on Facebook and he hopes to sell his Orient Beach home with rental units soon.  I then questioned him about the 1955 Pontiac convertible that was embroidered on his shirt.  "Ah, you like it?" he said.  Well, that got the two of us going on our love of classic cars and he revealed that his brother has a '55 Cadillac convertible.  After another 10 minutes I could see that my wife was tiring of the car stuff so we wished him well in his new life in the USA and left his shop for what will probably be the last time we will ever see him.  St. Martin is listed in all their literature as "The Friendly Island" and with good reason.  The island will have a hard time finding a replacement for one of their most likable ambassadors by the name of Paolo.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.