a blast from the past

so for some time now, i have been trying to track down a friend of mine from high school. i don't know what prompted the nostalgia trip, but in my perfunctory efforts to do so, i always came up short. i couldn't find him on any of the alumni sites, even when our 10 year reunion was looming, and i was half convinced he'd fallen off the face of the earth.

to be honest, there are quite a few people i've wondered about since high school. unlike a lot of people, i actually have mostly fond memories. maybe it's just because i've succeeded in blocking out the trauma, but when i think back, i think of it as a time of fulfillment and growth. wow, it does sound a little bizarre saying that.

it's not that high school was perfect for me, no one ever feels as good as they should about themselves, and everyone cares far too much what everyone else thinks, but i enjoyed high school for the most part.

i experienced my first 'love', found my true passion in life, and was exposed to the world like never before. so , when i think back on those four years, i can't help but think about some of the people who shared them with me--including joey (now joe). it may be because our friendship was so unlikely. whoever heard of a football player being friends with a drama geek? well, maybe it's more common than i realize, but it wasn't for us then. it was eye opening for me in many ways--more than he would ever realize, i'm sure. it was then that i really learned that different talents and personalities are wonderful things, and not things to avoid or be afraid of.

so, after who knows how long of periodically checking out websites and performing google searches, i had come up with nothing. and i had pretty much given up the search. i figured he would turn up eventually, and i left it at that.

that is until a couple days ago. see, anne was doing some searching on my space and had found some old acquaintances. i should mention, i am not a fan of my space. i am on there because scott invited me, but i rarely even look at it. her searches however, produced a curiosity, and i thought i'd see what came up. after looking through a few results pages, i saw a familiar face. it was joe's brother. so i dropped an email, and asked him to send my info along to joe, which he did.

so today i swapped messages with my old friend, and learned that he has been very busy in the last ten years! married with pugs and living in the portland area where he has landed as an economist, after pursuing football and even theater! ironically, i was out there visiting dylan and kelly not too long ago, and while i am sad to have missed the opportunity then, i'm sure there will be another chance to catch up face to face. there is something rewarding in learning about the success and happiness of those you have regarded fondly no matter how long ago it may have been..