I've been thinking a lot lately about how people in life come and go. Some stay for ever, like your best friends and family (and of course the ONE, once you finally meet him or her) but others are only there for one thing. That thing could be to help you when you need them most or to be your friend when you have none, they might be there to inspire you or to let you inspire them. Whatever the reason they come, they leave just as swiftly.
Facebook is an interesting tool that allows us a slightly better opportunity to touch base with these people, or at least get updates once in a while on what they are up to. For example, one particular person that falls into this category just got engaged over the weekend. He is the guy who I once went on the most awkward date of my life with.
This guy was a few years older than me. We worked together at a summer job. He was starting Grad school when I was just getting out of high school. He had beautiful eyes and adorable curly-ish hair. I had the biggest crush on him, but he had a girlfriend, of course. I never thought he would be interested in me anyway, because I was kid and he was in Grad school. But I spent that whole summer daydreaming those "what ifs" and started writing them down. And when I started college that next year, I kept thinking about him and writing stuff down. Essentially, he was the inspiration for my first attempt at writing a screenplay.
Now, I have to say, I never finished that screenplay. It got a little too "Nicholas Sparks" for me and I wanted to move on to other stuff. But I never threw it away. I still have the hand written pages that I stapled together with notes to type up later.
Anyway, this guy and I didn't really get back in touch until a few years later when Facebook took over the world. He had just been jilted by a fiance (remember that girlfriend he had that summer I had a crush on him?) We started commenting on each others' walls. Then we started chatting on AIM. I was dating my ex, then, and I would talk to him about it. When that relationship finally fizzled out, he asked if he could call me. And he did. Nearly every day until I came home for that summer. He told me he wanted to take me out on a date. I had never been on a date. Not with someone I wasn't already in a relationship with, anyway. (I don't count high school dances as dates, either.)
So, like I said, we went on the most awkward date ever. The more I think back on it, the more awkward it seems. Maybe it's just because I'm a really awkward person in general. Or maybe it's because I no longer had any romantic interest in this guy but was just shell-shocked that he wanted to go on a date with me! Because, remember, I was just a kid to him.
Anyway, after our date we both got busy and didn't talk as much. He moved to Chicago and I went back to California. He met someone and they started dating. I graduated from college, moved back home, and started Grad school. But like I said about Facebook, it keeps us in the loop. He and I still occasionally post comments on each others' pages. And I was able to see through my news feed that he proposed to his girlfriend over the weekend and she said yes. That girl turned out to be his One.
Why is this important? Well, he came into my life twice. The first time, he inspired that screenplay. He was my muse. The second time, we were there to help each other through our respective failed relationships. Even though that date was awkward, it was a date. It made me feel like even though I had just been rejected by my ex, I was still dateable to someone else. And for him, well, I like to think maybe I was a stepping stone for him before meeting his One. Maybe I'm giving myself too much credit. Ah, screw it. I can remember things the way I want to. It's my life.
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