day nineteen

surprised by a conversation. a missing key has required that one group of neighbors and i interact a bit more frequently. and it has been a huge blessing. the conversations have been short, but i’m thankful for the opportunities to connect. and i’m thankful that it opened the door to connect with one neighbor in particular. she is a complete stranger to me, but i have been intrigued by her routine and curious to hear more of her story. and the opportunity presented itself when i least expected it.

unit number one – consisting of a boyfriend, a girlfriend, and their friend – have decided that they would like to throw a neighborly function for the entire building. this function will be relatively small (since there are only four units) but will provide a great opportunity to meet and connect with others that we essentially share space with. rumors had been floating around that this event was in the works, but it was day nineteen of this experiment that the planning phase officially began.

it must have been 6:30 p.m. when i heard the first knock on my door. as i approached, i heard a voice identifying herself as haley.* she wanted to know if saturday night would work for our get together and after deciding that it would, explained that she would return with the specifics. thirty minutes later, i heard another knock on my door. this time it was grace,* haley’s roommate. she proceeded to tell me that the original night wouldn’t work and asked if i could offer an alternative. we continued to chat for about ten minutes (well, really for three as we were being consistently interrupted by my children and their obsession for taking pictures with my camera phone). again, i was told to await the details.

the girls and i continued our evening as expected – playing for a bit, taking baths (the kids, not me), and reading a few stories. we said our prayers, lit the candle and the flashing “go star” lightbox, and crawled into bed (again the kids, not me). and as i continued the evening by myself – picking up some odds and ends around the house – it hit me. the night that i gave as an alternative, wasn’t going to work. i completely spaced it. argh! i didn’t really want to go downstairs and share the bad news, but decided that out of respect, i should do so (before the entire event had been planned).

i apologized for being the most difficult tenant on the planet and then to my surprise was invited in – to sit and chat. grace was alone, watching television, while her friends were out enjoying their weekly ethiopian meal with others in their circle of influence. i shared with her my interest to hear her story – to find out who she was and how life had shaped her. it seemed like a pretty big request to ask of a stranger, but she obliged. and it was so refreshing to be able to enter into a conversation with someone on a night that i typically just spend by myself (after the munchkins are all tucked away). after twenty minutes or so, her friends returned (with additional friends) and i said my goodbyes. (it felt a bit awkward to continue in front of an audience.) as i left their apartment, and climbed the stairs back to mine, i felt joy. the conversation that i had just shared with a new friend had been simple but rich and i hoped that it would continue. it was a pleasant surprise.

and as i write this entry today, i'm realizing just how much i love connecting with people and engaging them in conversation (not always easy for an introvert). god, thank you for this surprise today.

* names have been changed to protect the innocent. ha!