The summer before my senior year of high school, I attended a program called SPEBE. It involved a handful of high school students dorming at Chaminade University of Honolulu in a Biology program run by the university's teachers. That particular year, there was a program for teachers there as well.
One of the teachers in attendance was a very cool man who we'll call TP. He was in his 20's with a Jack Nicholson thing going on. He loved to surf and drink and enjoy life. 16 year old girls definitely found him worthy of attention.
I had a connection with him. Even discovered he wrote poetry too and got to read some of his stuff. But what makes this worthy of "Small World"?
TP was working at that time in Hilo. Originally, he was from Texas. For some reason (I totally forget why), I was talking to my dad's aunt over the community telephone. She was a nun in Brownsville, Texas. TP was sitting next to me, so I mention I have a buddy from Texas here. She says, where is he from? Corpus Christi, I say. She says, who is it? I say TP.
Yes, she knew who he was! Apparently she knew his family, knew him since he was little. Freaked both of us out! Too weird. So I hand over the phone, and they start chatting.
It's one of those moments that I will never forget. How utterly strange to meet someone who knows someone I know from a enormous state like Texas. It really is a small world.
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