History

A few months back I mentioned finding an old girlfriend of mine on MySpace. It also talked about how weird it was to be able to look at her life without actually getting involved.

I’d toyed with the idea of e-mailing her, but just couldn’t bring myself to do it. I guess I wasn’t sure how she’d react and what I’d even say.

Well, yesterday she apparently found me and shot me an e-mail. It brought back a flood of those old memories once again.

Have you ever walked down the street and smelled a certain perfume on a person or a scent in the air, and your mind just floods with memories as real as if they just happened yesterday? Lately I’ve been going through a lot of those types of experiences.

I went downtown two weeks ago to the Buzz Conference at Union Station. In high school I spent a bit of time there, just walking around and letting the days go by, enjoying a limeade (that place as since closed) and simply watching people. It helped that I also got to walk across the mall and through some trees back home.

Being there got me thinking about my whole life in DC. Thoughts about my old job, thoughts about friends and relationships I had and family memories.

Having Kelly e-mail me has brought back up a lot of those thoughts as well. Kelly was one of those good relationships which I did think may end with us getting married. There was some age difference, and my friends didn’t particularly like her, but we really connected, without a lot of physical pressures.

I have been listening to Mark Batterson’s sermons from the National Community Church. In his So Far So God (1 or 2) sermon, he mentions that we really need to be thankful for the prayers that God doesn’t answer. Possibly more thankful for those than for the prayers he really does answer.

Growing up I’ve come to recognize that I would have only held Kelly back from the amazing life she wants to live. I could never have been very good at handling her acting life. I like being settled, and I know she is content to let the world flow and move along for the ride. While I appreciate that, and sometimes envy it, I like the solid community I have, and the satisfaction that comes from having such great people near me all the time. Living in New York would never have suited me, and she would never have been content in suburbia.

God knows what he’s doing, even if I don’t entirely understand. He has so blessed me with a wonderful daughter and amazing wife. He’s also guided my life toward supporting him and spreading His great message to those people who haven’t heard it yet.

All of these thoughts have been bringing back the memory of one of my best friends through middle and high school. I haven’t talked to Geoff in years, and I still have some hurts that go with that friendship. As with Kelly, I wonder if he’d want to hear from me, and what we would say. But, maybe those are just excuses.

I may have some weird gifts, but here’s one that I love more than anything. After years away from someone, without talking or any contact, I can connect with someone as though not a day has passed.

I love that. I am really hoping that connection will work with Kelly, and with Geoff once I finally decide to reconnect.

Who is it in your past that you’d really love to find out about? What’s stopping you from trying to reconnect with them?

I have no idea how this will all turn out. I’m just glad that I have the chance to see how their lives have changed, and the amazing things they have done.

Peace,
+Tom/Bob

posted by Tom at 10:16 PM