Couldn't Happen Any Other Way

I remember when my parents told me when I graduated from high school and was bawling like a baby because my friends and I were all going to different schools, that college would be the greatest time of my life. I was sure to meet lots of new people and make new friends. While I did meet lots of people and had a good time, I never really connected with a group like I did in high school. Our group was a hodgepodge, a mixture of athletes, artists, brainiacs, and musicians. There was one constant, though. Kristen and I met during field hockey try outs our freshman year. We were inseparable for years and we swore we'd always be friends.

Then life happened.

Our friendship crumbled, but we remained in each other's minds. We knew when the other was in need, we knew when the other got married and other happenings. There was still a connection. The internet and email were crucial in the resurrection of our friendship. Our lives took completely different paths, but that was a surprise to neither of us. We'd always been polar opposites. That was what made us such great friends.

She and her husband are both chiropractors. They have worked and travelled all over the world. They were in Saudi Arabia when I emailed to tell her we were moving to China. She said she'd been to China once and would love to go back someday. I didn't hear from her for a couple of years, not until last fall. She emailed to tell me she and her husband were moving to Shanghai to take a position at one of the international hospitals. We started emailing each other regularly. She would ask questions about China. I'd ask questions about Saudi. We were actually giddy with the thought of seeing each other. We'd figured out our last meeting was back in 1992. She'd come to see me perform at URI, when I was in 'Cabaret'. It was all I could to keep from meeting them at the airport.

We finally met a week after they arrived at the Hong Qiao Pearl Market. They hadn't been to a fake market yet and my girls wanted to give them a lesson in bargaining. They were still tan from their time in the desert and she hadn't changed. We stood in the parking lot for few minutes, hugging each other. My girls immediately swarmed and wanted to show them the market.

We walked and talked, knowing twenty years of stories would take more than an afternoon to cover. So much had happened in our lives that we wanted to share with the other one, but for compounded reasons, we never did. It seemed fitting that we were meeting up again on the other side of the world. Arriving from different directions, with completely different traveled life paths, we were ready to share our stories. We've had a couple of lunches together in Shanghai, and last Tuesday our hubbies met each other. Getting reacquainted will take some time, but it seems we're on the right track. And in the words of my mom "Friends back together, all is right."