You've Got Mail

Like so many others, I am the frequent recipient of tons of junk mail - advertisements, credit card applications, restaurant menus, etc. However, yesterday I received ACTUAL mail!! Ally sent me a copy of her favorite book, The Dance of the Dissident Daughter. I am so excited about this for a number of reasons. First, I have been very uninspired by the books currently sitting on my bookshelves. I seem to be in one of those in between moods when it comes to books - nothing is really jumping out at me. Second, I'm excited because having this book in my possession now means that I get to return it to Ally when she returns to the QC this summer - we'll finally have a chance to meet!

This new friendship got me thinking about the varied and strange ways that certain people come into our lives (people that we would never meet otherwise) and how sometimes it feels as though you were destined to meet. I have people like this in my life. My friends Jason and Megan are this way to me. We all met at work (Megan and I worked in the same department; Jason and I started work on the same day and went through hours of orientation together). Despite Megan leaving her job in 2001 and me leaving in 2002, we've all remained close. Jason and I e-mail each other regularly and I can't imagine not knowing him for the rest of my life. Megan and I are so much alike it's kind of scary - we often talk for hours about our strange obsessions and anxiety, and Megan can make me laugh like not many people can.

Then there are people who I've had this connection with that no longer exist in my life. I had a friend from way back in high school who was just like me - except she had blond hair and was from England - but you know what I mean. We were inseparable for years and then all of a sudden things got strange. She became too involved in my life and my decisions. She interfered in potential relationships because she didn't want to be left "alone". We last spoke in 2001 at a friend's wedding, where she made an odd comment to me. It rubbed me the wrong way and we never really talked after that.

I also have people who come in and out of my life who, despite their occasional absence, will always be a part of me - part of the fabric that makes me who I am today. Time, distance, misunderstandings, and disappointment cannot break our bond. There is one particular person I am thinking of as I write this, but do not want to say any more.