I had a friend in first grade and her name was Kajaka. In the middle of first grade she and her mom moved to California. The night before they left for California she and her mom spent the night at our house. I remember saying goodbye to her as she and her mom got in a cab for the airport the next morning.After that her mom called a few times and I spoke to Kajaka. Eventually Kajaka and I lost touch. Every now and then I wonder what happened to my little first grade pal. I wonder where she lives, is she married with kids, is she a rocket scientist or maybe a school teacher?
I also wonder how my life might be different if she had not left N.Y. I wonder if we would have remained good friends, maybe even become best friends. I wonder if we would have gone to middle and high school together. I wonder if she would be my best friend right now.
I wonder if she eventually moved back to N.Y. and if maybe we walked past each other on the street and never even knew it or when I later lived in L.A. did we pass each other on a freeway.
Mainly though I just wonder and hope that where ever she is that she is okay.
I will never know.
But I remember my friend and every now and then I think of her and I guess I always will.
Do you ever wonder what about someone you once knew?
20 comments:
Actually, some of the friends I kept in elementary school I've still seen around the hood. Those who I haven't seen I do think about here and there, but some things were meant to be, like letting those people be. I wonder if they're OK, but that's the extent. Maybe people are thinking about you the same way.
Hi MDC,
I can definitely relate to this post. This is the kind of thing I think about all of the time. In fact, I recently found myself wondering whatever happened to my best friend from 3rd and 4th grade. He left the elementary school we attended when he was 9 years old, and I never, ever saw or heard from him again. Recently, I "GOOGLED" him, and his name popped up. I finally searched him in Facebook, and found him. We've been back in touch over the past month or so; I can't get over how amazingly helpful these social networking sites can be when used responsibly, of course.
I do.
Oh yes; of course.
It's a strange thing with me. I very often run into people from my past. It's eerie almost, due to the frequency of its occurrence. I'll try to be brief. When I was little I had a friend named Angel. She moved when we were like 8 or 9. I never saw her again till I was 17. (I had failed biology and was in summer school). She was, too. We were in the same class. That summer we hung out a bit; then I went off to college and lost touch with her. Lots and lots of time passed (more than 10 years). I ran into her into her on a Harlem street about 4years ago. We didn't really reconnect. She's like a religious fanatic (I won't say which religion) and she kept sending me this religious rhetoric over e-mail. I asked her to stop. She didn't. I blocked her. And lost touch with her, till she actually e-mailed me recently. I ignored it.
I have similar stories of running into people from my past.
You never know. You may run into your friend one day.
I often wonder what happened to my frist grade classmates.
Hi Mes Deux. Missed your blog. :)
I totally rambled on that. Sorry.
i ALWAYS do it! its interesting to think back about how things differed from then until now and how they could be even more different just by having one extra indgredient, like an additional friend...or even one less friend.
Yes, all the time. I wonder how did a person who I admired back in early grade school turn out. I sometimes wonder the same about teachers and neighbors, as well. I wonder if a favorite of mines is even alive.
Do you think your friend wonders the same about her friend?
This post reminds me of one of the saddest losses I've had.
From kindergarten to 4th grade I had 2 best friends - Mary and Alice (names changed) in 4th grade another friend joined our group - Thea. The four of us did everything together. In Junior High School we kind of drifted apart - but still hung out sometimes. Alice got into a lot of trouble, I started hanging out with other people and Mary and Thea stayed close. Then in HS Mary and her mother moved away.
Though I still sometimes connected with Thea and Alice over the years I only saw Mary a few more times in college because the bus I took to school passed through the town she lived in so she would come to the bus station and we would chat for a bit or grab lunch depending on how long the layover was.
Then after college I lost touch completely with all of them. But I always believed that I would see my childhood friends again and that we would be as close as ever.
About 5 years ago I went on a website for a local organization and saw Thea's name and email address. I emailed her and it turned out that she was living close by and had daughters close in age to my daughter. We got together and just as I imagined we were as close and comfortable as ever. But she had bad news for me.
Mary had died of cancer a few years earlier. I'd never lost a friend before. And the fact that I hadn't seen her in close to 15 years didn't make the loss any less. It was devastating to me to know that I would never see her again.
The one positive is that it's made me realize that you can't wait. Whenever I realize that I haven't seen or spoken to a good friend in a while, I make myself reach out because I know that one day it can be too late.
Yes, I definitely think about it all the time. I rarely run into people from my past. I guess because I no longer live in my hometown, but even when I do go back I rarely see old classmates/acquaintances.
There are a ton of folks I wonder about.
Even some from my high school years -- that's why I'm planning to attend my 10 year reunion this summer. I wish they had a reunion for elementary school -- now that would be interesting!
Great post!
I wonder about a female who was one of the best friends that I had. We're both married now. And I don't know how her spouse would feel about her being contacted by an old friend from high school so I don't want to cause any problems, so I probably wouldn't reach out to her. But I think about her from time to time.
My 'kajaka's name is Anisa. We were inseparable friends in first grade. We held hands and whispered all day long.
When my family moved to this country I missed her horribly. I remember crying for her, and being told that she was doing the same. Occasionally, our mothers would get us on the phone -- I remember crackling over the overseas call (it was before fiberoptic phone lines, lol).
I still wonder where she is, and will probably never find her because her last name would probably be different if she got married, plus I don't know what country she is in.
My junior high best friend! Actually I heard she's married. I hella want to see what she looks like now.
all the time
then i got facebook
that helped with mosta that
Hi MDC!
Yes I often think about people who used to be in my life and wonder where they are Alyson Woody, Rita Hinkley, Paulette LeMond....maybe they will see their names here and post a comment. smile
Thank you for stopping by. My life and family are going through a very difficult time, so your thoughts are much appreciated!
Jose,
It must be pretty cool to live in the neighborhood that you grew up in.
_____________________________________
TamiGill,
Wow that is great! Maybe I'll try that but I don't remember Kajaka's last name!
___________________________________
Baby Please,
That's interesting; weren't you curious to see if she had gotten past her fanatic stage when you got the last e-mail from her?
I'm not sure if I would even recognize Kajaka.
I missed you too!
___________________________________
PCD,
That's an interesting thought. People can make such a difference in our lives.
___________________________________
FL,
I'm sorry to hear about your friend. But it's good that you are back in touch with your other friend.
___________________________________
BGG,
An elementary school reunion would be crazy!!! I would love that.
___________________________________
12Kyle,
Well if you two were not a couple in high school then it probably wouldn't be a problem.
___________________________________
SheCodes,
Well I guess you definitely understand how I feel. :)
___________________________________
Afrodite,
You should find her and get in touch!
___________________________________
Dejanae,
I might try Facebook for some other friends. But I don't know Kajaka's last name. :(
___________________________________
Hiya Janie!
Well just know that you have a blog family that is thinking about you! I hope things improve very soon.
Thanks so much for stopping by! :)
Do you think your friend thinks about you, Mes? You skipped over me.
*sad face*
LOL.
Well Mes, you sorta know my story. I'm detached from that... kinda. I wonder and that is it. I have no desire to really find them but in an ironic instance, peep this. I want to move to Nevada real bad as I may have posted to you in some way. Well, I had a friend on the NY Undercover forum from years ago who resides in Vegas, still today I found out. I emailed an OLLLD email address from 4 yrs ago or so and he emailed back.
Yet, he saddened me telling me I do not want to live in Vegas if I have allergies/asthma because of the pollen and dust there. So, on one hand I am glad we made contact, no doubt. But, it's not something I plan to do with any other people of the past. And I really do not feel bad about it either.
yep, the first white boy i ever met when i was 12 named trip and lutheran summer camp - no whites where and when i grew up in memphis
I had a friend like that. We were best friends until she left me in the 4th grade. Throughout grade school and high school I would think about her from time to time (I went to school with some of her cousins). However once I went to college I no longer thought of her. Then maybe a couple of months ago one of her cousins hit me up on myspace and said to look at his page. She was in his top friends!!!! He (her cuz) had also lost touch with her and found her on there. When I tell you we exchanged numbers and talked to each other like we never was apart. From 4th grade to present, it has been 11-12 years ago!!! What is so crazy is that once I graduated from college I moved to a certain city (not even that big) and she lives there!!! I could have got to see her if we only knew. However thanks to her cuz and myspace we can keep in contact now.
Thanks to the innovation of myspace, I've reconnected with a few friends from elementary school. I've always had a core group of friends, in elementary, middle and high school. They've never been the same as I transitioned from one school to the next but I always thought that my tight click in high school would remain that way for the rest of our lives. Sadly that wasnt the case. One or two of us just drifted apart but for the most part the others and I stopped talking because I often times felt inconsequential to them. Once in a while my mind wonders to the days of old either because I said some phrase unique to us or because I've run across something that I know one of them would appreciate. Our class reunion in coming up and I haven't the faintest how it will be to see them again. I'm not even sure if I'll great them. Its been so long...
I think about it all the time. I wonder if I should let go or if there's a reason I haven't forgotten them. Facebook helps. Because deep down, I feel I should at least let them know I'm thinking about them. Send good vibes their way, you know?
Post a Comment