Remembering George and Barbara Bush

It was the second night of a getaway weekend for me and my wife, Christine, as we celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary at the Breakwater Inn and Spa in Kennebunkport, Maine, in September 2009.

Having dinner in the hotel’s Stripers Waterside restaurant we were eating our appetizers — our entrees were already ordered — when all of sudden there was an explosion of motion that spanned from the hostess to all of the wait staff.

Four Secret Service agents posted themselves strategically across the restaurant, and then two very recognizable people walked to a table in the back of the restaurant that Saturday night.

A coiffed head of white hair appeared and we saw former First Lady Barbara Bush and not to far behind there was former President George H.W. Bush.

As they walked, they waved hello and then someone asked why they were here instead of eating at home — Walkers Point — 1.4 miles down the road. “George just had a hankering for oysters,” Barbara responded looking at that person, but in a such a friendly manner that it seemed as if everyone in the restaurant was included in the interaction.

After the Bushes were seated and the Secret Service agents folded into the background, the restaurant’s routine returned to normal.

Our waiter apologized for the longer than expected wait for the entrees. He explained that is the protocol when the former First Couple came into the restaurant. The reward for all diners who dealt with the commotion was a free drink.

As I say about sports teams I do not root for, I’m not a fan, but I do follow politics and respected George’s service to the country and could at least agree to disagree with his policies as it seemed he cared about how the country was governed and not just himself.

With both Barbara (April 18) and now George, on Nov. 30, gone, I raise a glass to toast two people, who I respected despite the differences in our worldviews, and provided my wife and I a glimpse into how people with class behave in the public eye.