Walking down Memory Lane...

I truly love it when past experiences and long lost friends converge with the present. It makes me so happy because my only long term regrets in this life have been from losing contact with people I care about. Recently, my family and I have been blessed by reconnecting with long lost friends. Each experience has filled my heart with happiness because seeing them again makes us realize how much we love them...

Reconnection #1: Eric and Erin

He-Man met Eric when they were 12 years old. I met him when I was 13. Funny thing is, I met He-Man later and we owe our relationship, in part, to Eric. One thing we've both appreciated about Eric, is his loyalty. Seriously, I don't know about He-Man but I can attest to my own personal dorkiness...and he hung in there! When he met his wife Erin, the first thing we both noticed was that he was really happy. Alas, in the intervening years, school and geographical relocation found us losing contact. I always regretted not getting to know Erin better.

BUT then, Erin and I recently caught up with each other through blogging. Although we hadn't had much of an opportunity to get to know each other previously, I discovered that she is an easy person to feel a kinship with. It was quickly recognizable that she is a woman of great love, strength and compassion not to mention she has this amazing movie star hair! It was so great to get reacquainted through cyber-space. Even better, we met for dinner.

After catching up, it was like no time had past. The kids had a blast with each other and made fast friends. It was really a wonderful evening, reminding me of how I imagined the sons of Mosiah and Alma's post-mission reunion must have been (in the Book of Mormon). After years of not seeing each other, Alma and his friends reunited. Adding so much to their joy was that they were filled with goodness and could share in joy and the love they felt for their Savior.

It's a wonderful thing to see the people you care about so incredibly happy, making life together meaningful and joyous. To see someone with their absolute match, complimenting each other in the very best ways has got to be one of the most beautiful things to behold in this life.

The hours past too quickly and it was time for them to go home. (Early school hopefully wasn't too tricky after that late night) Lucky for us, we are holding one of their books hostage so we're going to have to meet up sometime soon for the trade-off. :)

Check out these darling pirate children and their funny little pirate faces...
















Reconnection #2: Diana (one of my best friends in high school)

Diana and I met in the seventh grade. I thought she was the coolest kid in school. Not because of her fabulous fashion sense or her witty sense of humor (although that helped) but because she was one of the sincerest people I'd ever met. She had a way, even when we were young, to be fair and good to others around her. I quickly learned that she got this gift from her parents, who are people who have no idea how remarkable they really are.

Last weekend I finally had an opportunity to visit my hometown for Diana's son's birthday party. Walking through the front door gave me that old, familiar feeling of being among cherished loved ones.

Catching up was wonderful. She's discovered a new talent in her life as a yoga instructor and will do well by incorporating it with her gift to heal others. I was sad to hear about some of the obstacles she's recently had to face but proud of her for rising above it, proving her strength of spirit. There is still a goodness in her eyes. It just reminded me that true friends, no matter how far or how long they are apart, will always be connected.

Reconnection #3: Beverly and Boyd

As I drove home, I decided I was going to attempt to track down our old seminary teacher. She and her husband served a mission for the LDS church in Australia years back and with our move, I lost contact. I didn't hear much about them until my sister-in-law in Japan got their phone number. Funny thing, I had to call JAPAN to get a local number!

Beverly and Boyd meant a lot to me in high school even though I had no idea just how much until they were far away. We spoke briefly on the phone and even planned to visit when we were in their town in July, but we just couldn't work it out.

But, I finally had the opportunity to attempt a quick visit. I drove around, a little lost for about a half an hour. It was almost 9:00 Sunday morning and I saw signs of people loading up in cars for church. I finally stopped and asked someone for directions. Turns out, they were neighbors and I was only a few feet away.

I pulled into their driveway just as they were pulling out. I couldn't help it, I put my car in park and jumped out to see them. They got out of their car too and we spent a few moments hugging and catching up. I can't explain it because I was overcome with emotion but there is something so incredible about seeing someone who has impacted your life so positively after such a long time. They are just as beautiful as I remember them. Bev still laughs that wonderful laugh of hers and Boyd still has that twinkle in his eyes.

These experiences have just reminded me of how interconnected we are. No matter where our adventures lead us. No matter how much time we spend away, we will always have friends and loved ones, somewhere, who care about us...and isn't that a wonderful thing?!