CHANCE MEETINGS
In September of 1999, my daughter and I attended a wedding in Chicago. Early Sunday morning, before we drove back to Davenport, we took a walk downtown to see the display of life-sized cow statues around the city that had been decorated by local artists.
As we were walking along Michigan Avenue, a woman approached us and asked if we would take her picture by one of the cows so she could send it to her son. I readily agreed, took the photo by the “Monet” cow, and she gave me her name and address. Then her husband (who had driven around the block) pulled up, picked her up and took her home.
A week or so later, after I had mailed her the photo, I received a “thank you” note along with a $1.00 bill, folded origami-style, into a little kimono! In her note, she revealed that she was a nurse, and very active in her Evergreen Park IL community. She taught knitting classes at the local cancer center, helped at a children’s camp, and volunteered at a hospice in the city. Her commitment to her community and others around her put me to shame! It was such a charming letter that I wrote back to thank her and told her a little about myself. That was the beginning of a wonderful friendship.
Over the years, her letters always contained “stuff”: newspaper clippings, poems, little craft items, flower seeds, recipes. But what I treasure most are the letters themselves. She is a woman of great faith and compassion for others. She has so many interests. There is always something new that she’s investigating, and she inspires me to investigate as well. She was delighted to find out that I am a librarian. She is an avid reader, is involved with her local library, and we often share book titles. I was honored when she said that she considers me a “kindred spirit”.
We have not since met face-to-face. I’m a little afraid the “magic” of the relationship will be gone if we meet in person again.
I believe in chance meetings. New friends, especially later in life, open up new worlds. I’m grateful that fate, or destiny - or cows - brought us together. I am lucky to have been by that particular cow in Chicago on that particular morning. My life has been so much richer.
Barb Reardon
