Blast From the Past

While I was walking through Target with Meg last weekend I got a notification on my phone from Facebook messenger.  I opened it and was completely surprised to see a message from my friend, Jim Kenney, from college.  I was thrilled to hear from him as it had been several years since he messaged me.  I also found it ironic that I heard from him while I was in Bloomington as that was where I usually thought about him most.  From his messages I realized that he was also glad to see the end of the Trump presidency, could relate to living in MAGA land, and was ready to down size and move as well.  Just like our family he had seen ups and downs this past year and was thankful to have been vaccinated already.  I filled him in on what our family had been up to and what was going on in Bloomington hoping to hear from him again soon.

I thought a lot about Jim today as I was taking it easy and sorting through some of my memory tubs from high school and college.  Jim was always such an important part of my life and even though we chose different paths after IU with him ending up in California and Doug and I staying in Indiana, I had thought of him often.  I loved all of the fun things that we did the four years that we lived in the same town.  From burning his artwork to repotting a plant to having German fest to cleaning his apartment, it was always awesome to spend time with him.  Jim taught me that it was ok to be me and that I didn't have to compromise who I was to be with friends with someone.  He introduced me to Doug and always made time for me.  I loved my days at IU, but once we had a family I began to cherish the time with the Heinisch family more.  Jim was the only thing that I really missed from my time in B-Town.  

After the messages that I received today, I hoped that I would be able to see Jim again.  Maybe it won't work just yet, but hopefully in the future.  He was the person who told me that just because I was friends with someone in the past, that I didn't have to remain friends with them forever.  He also was the one who told me that it was ok to go years without seeing someone and pick up right where you were.  With Jim it was always the later.  I was extremely thankful for that today.