A Chance Encounter: An Intriguing Experiment
It’s funny, isn’t it? The memories and experiences that fade with each year we get older can pop up in the most unexpected ways. I happened
to be out with my mom one afternoon recently, and we were talking about how long it’s been for each of us to go to one of our favorite spots
in Southern California, and that is one of the many gorgeous beaches we have here. I went to Newport Beach earlier in the year, but I’ve
always dreamed of venturing out to Santa Monica or Venice Beach, or maybe even Laguna Beach. As we talked about our hopes of getting there,
she suddenly remembered a fun day when I was just a few years old, and we went to the beach. Apparently, we had decided to go on a boat ride
to watch for dolphins and whales, and on that boat, I’d met a young girl whom I had befriended quickly. According to my mom, we were inseparable
for the rest of the day, and sadly parted ways, never to meet again.
I have no recollection of this day, but I was suddenly intrigued. I’ve always been a shy guy, but this encounter painted me as a talkative,
active young man with a natural charisma I didn’t think I possessed at that age. I was curious, so I went looking through some old photo albums,
and sure enough, I found the pictures of me and this young girl, (pictured above). Now, the memory still alludes me, but I thought to myself,
how intriguing, that after all these years, these pictures should surface at a time where I’m looking to bolster my confidence.
I began to think about the power that a chance encounter or a spontaneous moment can have on our lives. Hearing that I wasn’t always the
shy, soft-spoken young man I am today gave me a boost of inspiration that I’ve been looking for. Sometimes, the tiniest, most random moments
in time can have a huge impact on others. The world can seem like such a random, chaotic place a lot of the time, but other times, I can
see how we are more connected than we realize. I’m not sitting here saying that fate brought me and this girl together, nor am I saying
that it was our destiny to meet that day. I’m a semi spiritual man, but even my spiritual tendencies are based in science. What I’m talking
about here is the fact that the connections we make ourselves, not the ones destiny has forced upon us, are powerful themselves. We have the
power to impact others and ourselves.
Now, I also found myself curious to know what happened to this young girl. I have no name, only a picture of the two of us together. We were
both so young, but I find myself wondering, what happened to her? What is she doing now? Who is she, and more importantly, is she happy? I’m
not sitting here hoping for some big, Hollywood style romantic scene, where we reunite at that same beach, (I believe it was either Newport
or Laguna, I can’t remember), and have some huge, heart-pounding moment with the rain pouring down around us. No, this is just a curiosity
more than anything. She apparently was one of my first friends, albeit for merely 1 day. Even if I never meet her in person again or get
the chance to be her friend, I at least would love the opportunity to say hi, ask how she is, and thank her for her day of friendship. Like
I said, I’m not expecting anything, but if anyone knows or recognizes this little girl from an old photo, or has seen this photo and would
know who she grew up to be, feel free to let her know about this blog post, or even tag her on social media. I’m curious to see whatever happens
with this blog experiment, because as I said, the smallest moments in our lives can have lasting influences, and this little trip down memory
lane gave me the burst of energy and inspiration I needed to push forward with my career. To her, and to all of you who have left impressions
on me and those in your lives, I say thank you.