The Eternal Dream

I thought I would insert a momentary lapse of reason into the blog this week and open the door just a crack to show a particular part of me that I all too infrequently keep well hidden as I travel through the wide expanse that is the Cyber World.

Note: my friend will probably crucify me for the abnormal amount of superlatives that will flow from my fingertips to this post, but hey, what are friends for if they can't be happy for the things that you do and accomplish in your life?

A very good friend of mine, both here in the real world and in the cyber world, has been up until this year, joyfully and happily traversing about the eastern seaboard as a single mom/foster parent, enjoying life as the ultimately rare breed known as a responsible free spirit.

Why I say "up to this year" is because that this year (or it could've been late last year, which goes to show just how much I really pay attention), my friend decided to test that vast complex ocean that we all fear to swim in, but must if we want to do something adventurous in our lives.

Dating.

Now, this may not sound much like a big deal, but for my friend this represented a giant leap of faith, as while she was very much the responsible free spirit, she was (and still is to a certain degree) also a wickedly private person. I would say that the majority of us (I say 'us' because my friend has a ginormous Facebook "family" that has become her de facto support system) were incredibly pleased about the new journey she was undertaking.

The interesting thing about my friend is that even though she cherishes her privacy, she also has no qualms about sharing things with her friends. Because of this, we were able to spend this past year reading with a growing sense of wonderment (I should say me, because I really can't speak for everyone in her circle) on how our friend was stepping out of her comfort zone and becoming incredibly confident and self-assured as the weeks and months progressed.

This growing sense of confidence and self-assuredness was not only evident in her Facebook postings, but also evident in the fractured e-mail conversations that would partake in on an infrequent basis. Even though these were infrequent at best, which wasn't really by choice, but simply the demands on our respective times as of late dictated it as such, it was still a blast to see that contentment bleed out through the e-mail.

One day, that contentment, that supreme self-confidence and self-assuredness came to a successful conclusion, and true to form, I missed a couple of signals that were being thrown my way. I had one of my seriously fractured (short) conversations which started out very strange, and ended one response later. I didn't think much of it until I got home and checked my Facebook page.

After logging in, I saw this peculiar status update from my friend (not quoting verbatim, but its pretty damn close): "Okay FB family, I said Yes!!"

I'll give you one hundred guesses and the first ninety-nine do not count on what she was saying yes to.

Suffice to say, the response from her FB family was overwhelmingly positive (hell, my response was "What?!" which was quickly followed by "That is the best news I've heard all year!"), and for any stragglers in her circle who couldn't quite believe what they were reading, she verified it a little while later with pictorial proof.

There are two reasons for this post, with the main reason being is that I'm extremely happy for my friend who was finally able to find that special someone to share the rest of her amazing life with, and this post was the best way that I knew how to give a personalized "CONGRABULATIONS!!!" (and perhaps embarrass her just a little in the process).

The other reason is that sometimes, you can get the most fantastic news from the most unlikeliest of sources, and that news can brighten your mood and blow out whatever dark cloud that happens to be gumming up your day.

To Ms. K (soon to be a Mrs in the very near future), I wish nothing but the best for you and your fiance and here's to having your marriage last as long as mine (21 and counting).

George

Update: On November 6, 2010, the always effervescent Ms. K became the one and only Mrs. P.