- Never say never - Sunday, February 06, 2005 ..because in life, you just never know. I got an email the other day that pretty much had me floored & amazed. Great America, 1994 This is a picture that I've had in my wallet for years, simply because the memories of these happy times bring a smile to my face when I need it most. I was 13 1/2 at Paramounts Great America theme park with my best friend since the 2nd grade, Mandy. We went on rides until we got sick, eat WAY too much candy, and still found time to take this snap shot in a photo booth. From 1988-1995 we did it all - played barbies and My Little Pony for hours, went through the New Kids On The Block craze together (she owned almost every New Kid doll, and she also got to go to a New Kids concert), and we grew up together through good times and bad. We met in while going to the same school, and although we went to many different grade schools, we were never too far away. She lived with her dad in the Bay Area near Oakland, but on the weekends she would be in Sacramento. The last time I saw Mandy was in 1996, on my 15th birthday. She invited me to come with her to Lincoln, CA. to watch the Beatle-impersonating group, Rain, perform at a concert in the park. We had a blast at that concert. Those were my "Beatle" years when that was pretty much all that was in my CD player. By the time we got back to my house, we were looking forward to seeing much more during that summer and with a big hug we said our good-byes. I never thought that would be the last time I'd see her. That fall, a tragedy happened in her life, and before I could even understand what happened or what I should do, she moved back to the Bay Area to live with her father. I was young and didn't grasp the gravity of what happened, but I did know that losing contact with my long time friend was almost the death of me. Despite not having the power nor the means to be there, I always had guilt about the friend that I just let - disappear. People move on in life and I would just have to except that we might not see each other again. ...that is until I checked my inbox after work on Saturday. The subject title was "Didn't we play barbies once?" and I proceeded to read the email that made me laugh and cry all at once. Mandy said while going through her old photos with a friend, she found a picture of us when we were 8 year old and it motivated her to try and locate me. In a casual attempt, she googled my name (thank GOD for google!) and found, of course, a ton of web pages on this lost April Shirshac. She told me that she had a dream she found old friends and that she was beside herself when she discovered my email address and how it was the biggest blessing to finally find me. She told me where she's living and finishing college, and if all goes right I'll be driving an hour and a half north of Sacramento to reunite with my 2nd grade friend after nearly 10 years of being apart. Words can't describe how I feel. We have a lot of years to catch up on, but I'm just so amazed that it took me a few days to believe it. It's such a small world and I've learned never to say never - ever again.

posted by April @ 8:25 PM 0 Comments: Post a Comment << Home