Connections to the Past

The following is a story of amazing "coincidences" that I hope you enjoy reading, but more than anything, I wanted to document them, so I never forget.

In elementary school, one of my very best friends was Amy. We hung out a lot and just loved being silly and having fun together. People would often ask if we were sisters because we looked similar - brown hair & brown eyed bean-poles. :) After 1st grade(?) she went to live with her mom, and we didn't really see each other for several years, but in 4th or 5th grade, she came back to my school when she moved back with her dad. We were instantly best friends again!

We spent SO MUCH time together during middle and early high school. Singing (Mariah Carey) and cheerleading were two of our favorite past-times. (And watching old Eddie Murphy SNL re-runs.) We drifted apart some near the end of high school, and have been pretty bad about keeping in touch since then, but I will always count her as one of my best friends growing up. LOVE YOU AMY!

When we were planning who all we would invite to our wedding last summer, it was no question that I would be inviting Amy and her dad & stepmom. They were such a big part of my life growing up and I wanted them to be a part of this special day.

One afternoon I was at Jason's parents' house, and Patricia was looking through the "Guin" side invitation list. She got to Amy's dad's name and said, "How do you know Demetreos?!" And I'm like, "Uhh.. how do you even know how to say his name?" :)

Turns out, when Amy's dad moved to America from Greece when he was a teenager, he spent a ton of time with Jason's father!! Jim helped Demetreos learn English! And they all knew each other at Red Bank High School (where Amy and I also went to school). It was totally unbelievable to me!

We ran into Demetreos at Walmart a month or so before the wedding. After he and I hugged and caught up, since it had been several years since we had seen each other, I introduced him to Jason and he immediately hugged him and started talking to him like they'd known each other forever. He told Jason what a great man his father was, and how thankful he was that they had been friends all those years ago.

Now, just think with me - I spent tons of my early life with Amy and her dad, and he spent tons of his early life with my future husband's father!! WHOOOAAA!!! How cool is that?!

I love that God revealed this special connection to us. I wonder how many other connections will come to light in my lifetime?!