Everyone you meet is a plot twist

In a previous meeting we spoke about receiving letters from friends and this reminded me of a box of letters I have stacked away in the top of my closet. Letters from friends, old love notes and letters from past time boyfriends and some other trinkets and memories from my school years.

I have been thinking about taking a trip down memory lane and opening this box to see the gems I have but maybe they should stay there for the time being.

I read somewhere that every person you meet is meant to cross paths with you and every person plays a part in your life. Whether it is to teach you a valuable lesson, or to prepare you for the future, there is something in each one.

Taking a trip down memory lane and thinking about the letters I kept, there was a young boy, 7 years old, Grade 1, who wrote me a few letters and sneaked them into my school bag. Sometimes with a flower, sometimes with a chocolate and once with a small little heart ring.  He had cystic fibroses, and he passed away at 22. But this small boy was madly in love at the time, even though he missed school a lot, and we never spoke a word to each other. He ended up being homeschooled, with a lady living next to us, and we became friends, and he would come to visit me from time to time. He had the brightest blue eyes and forever smiling, no matter the pain he went through!

The last time I saw him, we were around 17, he came to visit me during the school holiday with his friend. His friend rode a bicycle and gave him a lift since he couldn’t ride it himself. We watched movies, had popcorn and laughed so much. His health declined a lot after that, and he was in hospital a lot, only allowing his mom to visit. His smile could brighten any room, and his laugh was contagious. Thinking back now, the lesson I learned was to be strong and keep fighting in this sometimes harsh world. Doctors said he would never pass the age of 5 due to the severity of his condition, but he proved them wrong.   

I had some other friends too, they would also write friendship letters! These were fun because they decorated in colourful drawing and colour pens. Things like Best Friends Forever! And all kinds of bestie notes. Some of them turned out to be the rotten tomatoes, and a valuable lesson I learned was to choose your friends wisely. In primary school I had to choose my High school, at the age of 13, I made a life-changing decision to go to a completely different school than the rest of them! I started from scratch with no friends, no idea what to do alone in a new school, but somehow I knew, I had to get new friends and remove myself from that crowd.

Then as adults we also learn the lesson, how to read people, when to trust people and when to avoid them, based on body language, attitude, trust, I am not sure how we know, but we just have a gut feeling. I have met people when my gut told me this person is no good and it turned out that way, I have met people where my gut told me, we will know each other for a long time, and we still do. Maybe we have a “sixth sense indicator” toward people. And my gut has never disappointed me.

However as life goes, people test our patience sometimes more than we hope for, sometimes people drive us to insanity or push us to our ultimate limits BUT sometimes we have the time of our lives! A ride full of adventure in some cases misguided, ending up in hangovers and sometimes well-informed, ending up with the best memories.

Some people are sunshine, walking in, sitting down and just keep the warmth glowing and shining while other disconnect your Wi-Fi connection and makes you want to run for the hills. The lessons learned are the things we cherish and something no book can ever teach you, the raw reality of human connection, something we seek constantly.   

Some people are salty, some sour, some sweet, and other spicy – you just need to find the recipe that will compliment your spice (no matter how sour it might be). And do be driven into the craziness of trying to fit into a recipe that you do not compliment.

If the dish is not for you, move past and keep your patience in check.