Spring Break
Random encounters take us back to better days
RELOADING
Ron Pangrac
Spartan Daily Copy Editor
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Blank stare on my face.
"Ron Pangrac, right?"
"Yeah ... Do I know you?"
"It's Lily."
Blank stare on my face.
"Lily Jang. Actually, now it's Lily cfjfda."
Whatever last name she says doesn't stick in my mind, but at least a light is slowly starting to dawn.
"Oh ... oh, yeah ... Wow. I'm sorry I didn't recognize you. How are you doing?"
How long has it been? Ten, 15 years? I'm amazed she even recognized me.
We stand in the Albertson's parking lot and visit for a few minutes. The blanks are filling in - some from my memory, others from our conversation.
We had both worked in accounting at a company in Palo Alto. I was in accounts payable. Lily was in ... one of the other accounting groups.
I find out she's now married and has two daughters in elementary school.
I ask about some of the other people we had worked with in accounting. It's been years since she's seen any of them, same as me.
Pretty quickly, the conversation ebbs, and we say goodbye. She goes into the store, and I head for my car.
Just another instance of crossing paths with someone I knew years before.
These occur randomly (of course), but the older I get, the more frequently they happen. It's partly a function of making more and more acquaintances over time.
Moments like these have their upsides. When looking back at the situation you had shared with the person - be it school, work or whatever - you tend to recall the good parts, the good times more than any bad things that may have occurred. (Unless, of course, it's a person you had been in conflict with.)
It's also nice to catch up on what each other has been doing and to find out about other people they may have seen in the time since.
But these moments have an awkwardness to them, too.
One reason is that your lives have gone in different directions and there might not be much to talk about other than the recollections.
This is compounded when it's a person you didn't spend that much time with anyway.
If you were reasonably close, you may want to take more time getting reacquainted. But if you only knew them casually, there isn't as much to talk about.
Nonetheless, we appreciate making the connection.
Our lives get so hectic that often we don't have enough time to spend with current friends, let alone time to keep in touch with those we don't see regularly. When one of these moments occurs, it temporarily suspends our busy day. We get to go back to a time that surely had its stresses, but nothing like what's going on right now. It's a nice, little escape recalling the way things were.
Not only that, but the person becomes a representative of everyone we knew back then.
As I drove out of the Albertson's parking lot, I thought about Barbara, my all-time favorite supervisor, and Larry, who always looked classy in his double-breasted suits, the only kind he owned, and Jackie - man, she was hot. I wonder what ever happened to her. That's right, she moved to Southern California.
When these moments occur, you realize how little the people in your life today know about those folks or that part of your life.
These moments can occur anytime.
Company Christmas party, 1997. The bartender is a guy I went to school with. I had worked on a play in high school with Eric's older sister. A few years after that, I had worked at a bank for his younger sister.
I spent part of the evening reminiscing with him about social studies in 7th grade and German in high school, finding out about his sisters' lives and learning about his attempts to become a screenwriter.
These moments can occur anyplace.
A few weeks ago, I'm entering a bathroom in Spartan Complex East. Suddenly, someone says, "Mr. Pangrac, hi."
Who on campus calls me Mr. Pangrac?
Lo and behold, it's Tim, who had been in Boy Scouts with my sons. He was a year ahead of my oldest son.
We talk for a few minutes. I learn he's in his final semester here. I tell him I'm taking classes and working on a career change. Pretty soon, the conversation ends and we go our separate ways.
I'm glad, though, that we crossed paths. It leaves me with a nice feeling - who knows when I'll see him again?
Unfortunately, you can never be sure when you will run into someone again.
In 1998, I visited my sister in east Texas, where she lives. We drove out to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.
Tuesday morning, we were wandering through the crowd along a parade route. Suddenly, Bev said, "Look, it's John."
At first, I figured it was someone she knew from Texas, but no, it's our uncle from Los Gatos. It turned out one of the suppliers for his small business had arranged a business conference to coincide with Mardi Gras.
I would see John pretty frequently at church, but Bev hadn't seen him in a few years. The three of us spent a little while talking before John had to meet with some people.
Bev was happy we had that fluke encounter.
She became grateful for it two years later, when John died from a brain tumor. That was the last time she had seen him.
I would like to take the time to come up with a nice, little summation for this column, but this last story reminds me that I need to go make some phone calls.
Ron Pangrac is the Spartan Daily copy editor.
"Reloading" appears every Friday.
