Catching up with "old" Friends

I love catching up with "old" friends, and I've been doing a bit of that lately.

Reconnecting with academy classmates Patty and Mary Beth via our blogs has been a joy. I am being reminded of things from years ago as well as discovering new things by seeing the world through other equally-but-differently experienced eyes. It's brought me out of my GBA cocoon and put me in touch with other parts of the country and other ways of life. Most of my friends are somehow connected with the school either through work, children, or church so we have a rather narrow focus to our lives. Finding other things to talk about that have nothing to do with work has been a healthy thing to do and has helped me realize there really is more to life than EW/GBA, no matter how important that work might be.

Sabbath, someone came up behind me while I was talking with a colleague (even at church!). My friend said "I think someone wants to talk with you." I turned around and there was a long ago friend that I spent 3 months travelling through Europe with exactly 30 years ago this summer! He and I and 3 others from the EW/GBA/AUC area joined up with 45 others from all over the country to go on an incredible journey through more than a dozen countries on one of the Andrews study tours. We were pretty much inseparable those 11 weeks, but have hardly seen much of each other since. I had two more years of college, then took my first job out to Michigan. Coincidentally, his youngest sister was a senior at the academy I went to, so I saw him again at her graduation. We've lost touch since then except for now and again he resurfaces when his folks come to visit him and he brings them to church. But he's been on disability (he has AIDS) since 1994 and his mother has passed away, so he doesn't get out much. He looked good, although he was struggling with bronchitis and had to leave shortly after because he obviously wasn't doing very well. He's written a book about his fathers experiences in WWII. Sounds interesting!

Other old friends I've reconnected with are much younger. One of my students from Michigan faithfully calls me every few months, and has done so since I left 23 years ago! He just cazlled me a few weeks ago. Things are still the same with him. He's still a car detailer with a boat on Lake Michigan. He filled me in on all the "kids" from his class. In the same vein, I discovered a few months ago that designer and foreman of the new Floating Church on Lake Titicaca in Peru was another Michigan student of mine and yet another one, who is now a doctor, was on the medical crew there leaving just a week before the GBA seniors and I arrived. So, while I didn't not seem them face to face, I did come face to face with their work. What a small world!!!

A week ago Sabbath, I had lunch with another former student, this time from my SLA days. He and his wife and new baby were visiting (from CA) his parents so he invited me to join them so we could catch up with each other. Another SLA student has a new baby and we've been writing back and forth via his blog, where I also have enjoyed seeing pictures of his new son. One of my early SLA students is now teaching at AUC and he brought the AUC scholarships to graduation. It was quite delightful to see him doing so well. One of his good friends is the boyfriend of our new English teacher (who is also my second cousin). I am looking forward to reconnecting with both of them.

Much of this reconnecting wouldn't be possible without the internet. You can "Google" just about anyone you want and find out something about them. And so many have Blogs now. It's not only interesting but fun to hook up with people you used to know.