Social media. Love or hate it, I think it is here to stay. And in spite of some issues with it, there are some really cool things about it, too. I jumped into Facebook pretty quickly. Fun to reconnect with people I hadn’t seen in years. I especially enjoyed catching up with high school friends before our 25th reunion. It made the time so much more fun because we could disperse with all those initial questions.
For some reason I was more hesitant with Twitter. But I finally dove in. Not long after, as I began to connect with people, a pastor at a church we attended as young marrieds followed me. I followed him back. At some point he retweeted something of mine. All of a sudden my twitter account showed a new follower. I didn’t recognize the name. Then a direct message popped up, signed with a first and last name, a name I hadn’t seen in years. And I cried.
Long ago, as young mothers, I’d confided in my friend Becky my dream to write historical fiction. She had declared her willingness to help with any research I needed to do. More babies arrived. She moved away. I completely lost touch with my friend as the years passed.
It felt so good to be reconnected with her. We emailed. We even called. But that wasn’t enough. I wanted time to catch up, to hear her journey through the years, to share mine. She mentioned that her offer of research still stood. And in my mind, a plan hatched. A research trip I needed to take would put me close to her house. And it would help to have another set of eyes and ears and hands for note taking. And at meals and at night, we could catch up without any time limits.
So today she is with me on our way to Indianapolis. I’m so grateful for the gift of friendship—for the friends that have been there in the past, the ones I have now, and the ones God has prepared for me in the future. But there is something very sweet in the gift of a friendship rediscovered after so many years. I’m so glad God prepares good gifts for His children!
Have you ever “rediscovered” a friendship from the past? How did you happen to reconnect?