The Other Marie and her family came down from upstate and we went over to Liberty Science Center.
I've known the Other Marie since we were either 15 or 16 years old. She transferred into TC Williams from an Italian high school. (Her father was in the navy and she'd lived abroad most of her life.)
We used to live together in JC in the late 80s and early 90s, then we both moved to Avenue B and lived in the same building for years.
Here's what we really look like now, and here's what we looked like when we first met. And here's us in 1992. We're holding up all right.
6 comments:
Your mom's right, you both really do.
So nice to see Other Marie again. She looks just as I remember her, except with a different haircut, of course. I've always meant to tell her that I learned a great life lesson from her that's really stuck with me. Hope you don't mind my doing it here.
Back when I knew Other Marie in the late 80's, she was always really friendly and nice to everyone. She was the kind of person who starts up conversations and makes the people around her feel comfortable and included. Presumably she still is. Anyway, I realized that most people are waiting for someone else to do that, but Other Marie wasn't waiting, she was being the someone. And it was great. So I've been trying to do that ever since. I'm not always good at it, but the trying has made my life much better and more fun. And I've made a lot of good friends from doing this. So thank you, Other Marie.
Sara,
She still does that. I am not sure if it's a lesson she learned from her mother or from necessity (from so many moves around the world). But it truly is a glorious thing. From her I learned to let in other drivers in merge situations. I learned that it is okay to let go of suspicion and just be friendly. And the most marvelous thing is how she helps everyone she meets. We once got a phone call from a crazy old lady and I was like, "Er, what?" Turned out Marie had given her a ride home from the train. And she does that sort of thing all the time.
Now she coaches her older son's soccer team and administers study abroad programs, but at a private college now, no longer for Council. And she still interacts with everyone. She struck up a conversation with another couple and their kid while we at Liberty Science Center, just over how we were all going down the stairs. "Have a good visit," she called to them as we parted.
When I tell Gwen that Marie's best friend is named Marie she thinks that's amazing.
We had a particularly clueless co-worker at Roy Rogers when we were 17, who believed we were twins.
'Cuz we had the same name...
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