Connections

I remember the year 1980 very vividly. I was uprooted from the slums of LA to a quaint town in Cape Cod to live with my grandparents. Getting adjusted to a new school is always tough and being that I was shy and a bit of an outsider anyway, it made it doubly tough. Then a kid named Kevin Lynch came to me and said, "you want to go play?". Of course I did! I'll never forget that moment because that kid took the initiative and became my friend. That means a lot to a new kid! Kevin and I don't talk that much anymore, not due to any mishap but just due to divergence of interest I suppose. We were friends for quite a while growing up. And he's reserved as the first friend I had in Cape Cod.

There are plenty of moments like that, where someone will change the course of your life and impact you in some significant way. Sounds a bit corny but really, I often ponder the people that had some impact on me, and who I've had an impact on. I suppose one could say everyone has some impact, but I mean the ones you can pinpoint and see a noticeable change or sway in a certain direction of your life. And there are probably some that you don't notice it until you look in retrospect.

So cheers to all my current friends and e-friends, relatives, ex-girlfriends, well-wishers, colleagues and of course the assholes, all of whom I would not be who I am today. I hope that I've impacted you in some way that will leave a fondness in memory as you have for me.

And a special cheers to you Kevin!


ONE