Chance encounters. Something that I’d say doesn’t happen too frequently now that I work from home. My life has become so small. I don’t drink, I don’t go out much. The past year and a half has been truly dedicated to healing my past, but now I’m ready to go out into the world again. And so me and my one friend we’ve been going to the gym. We’ve been each other’s motivation to workout again. It’s been really nice to get out, to feel like I’m part of the world. I remember when I would leave my house before 7am and sometimes wouldn’t even get back home again until 7pm. My whole life changed, like so many others, I guess I would say for the better. Living slowly, for myself. Being able to heal. Having time, being careful with my energy. Who I invite in.
But today as we were walking in a stranger stopped our conversation. He said he hated to interrupt but thought he recognized something we were talking about. It was random and funny and it was something I missed about being out and about. Random conversations with strangers. We walked in and scanned our key cards, and just as we were walking towards the row of cardio machines I saw him. This person who I had known before, right there on the elliptical. My stomach flipped as I walked by him.
And I didn’t say a word to my friend but I knew he saw me. And what was even stranger was earlier today I was going through some old work emails, making sure I had all my personal effects. You know, before I signed off for good after 15 years. And I found an email chain with him. I forgot how funny he was. We had gone back and forth and wrote these ridiculously professional sounding emails that somehow incorporated Nicholas Cage being invited to speak at a meeting. I don’t know you had to be there. It made sense to us, and we were funny together.
He was one of those people who pulled the funny out of me. That made me all of a sudden witty because he knew how to play to that part of me. And I loved that about him. So imagine my surprise when after, I don’t know, three years of not one word he’s standing in front of me in the gym I just joined. And I know you must be thinking well maybe it’s a small town, or he lives nearby. Well last I knew he lived on the other side of town, and my town has 100k people, but this gym? This gym has had 10 max every single time we’ve gone. Which has been every day for two weeks and there has been no sign of him. Except for today, right after I read through our email chain.
I just think those little ironic moments, the coincidences that make your stomach flip. The universes beautiful tricks. Those things are what makes living life worth it.
The Girl Without A Face 