How a book established a friendship
Last week I posted this picture in Instagram. It was and is a lovely book. A treasure in my eyes. It's the book that Julia Child and Louisette and Simone are working on in Julie and Julia. A movie that I just adore, because who can say no to Amy Adams (seriously go watch Leap Year, now), but I'm not a cook. Not really and while I would have loved to display this book, I'm not a decorator either. I'm just a book worm, who loves to spend mornings in my local used bookstore. But this book will hold a special place in my heart, because it really did establish a friendship.
The crazy thing about blogging is that you interact with people that you may never meet. It's fun to get shout outs from your favorite "big" bloggers, but it's even more satisfying to have conversations with bloggers you have come to know and love. It's funny that I've taken to talking about some of my bloggy friends as if they are my friends in real life. As if I just got off the phone with them. That's what blogging does. It sets the foundations for not just interactions and contacts, but for actual friendships.
What I can't really explain to most is the community that I have entered. It's not a clique, or a secret club, it's more of a neighborhood. A bunch of women, with kids, without, crafty, or artistic, bookish, nerdy, beautiful, fashionable. Yet, we all like each other. We all tweet and facebook and comment on each other's blogs. We give encouragement. We pray. We love each others kids. It's crazy. It's unreal. Last year, I wanted to meet up with another blogger in Southern California so we could road trip to a conference. My husband was appalled. He could not believe that I would go to someones house I had never met and just get in her car. When I tried to explain that I knew her through her blog, he claimed that she could be a serial killer. But Babe, I said, I read her blog, I see her kids on Instagram, we tweet. It's totally cool. I know her.
Because I felt like I really did.
So that brings me to the book. I had recently exchanged numbers with Tricia so we could text. Can I just say how fabulous this is? Getting a text from someone you normally tweet is so much fun. So imagine my surprise when I get a flurry of texts from Tricia. Am I still at the bookstore? What does the book look like? Hello? Where are you? So I text her back and soon find out that that book up there is a highly sought after book. Especially if it has the copy write date of 1961, which it did. Then a text later revealed that they are being auctioned on Ebay for a queens ransom. I had to get the book. Pronto!
I go back to the store, kids in tow, and race up the staircase... Yes, staircase, and it's as fabulous as it sounds.. I find the book, open to the main page and call Tricia. No answer. So I leave a message. Hey it's me, Megan, I got your book, call me. And when I hang up I think... She has never heard my voice. I have never heard hers. This is like some twisted blind date situation.
It's what happened when she called me back that is amazing. Tricia and I talk. Like we have known each other for years. When she tells me about her day, I already know the details because of Instagram. When we talk about her life, I already know details because of her blog. When I offer advice, she receives it, happily, because she reads my blog. And just like that, this friendship, that was established in social media, is then defined in real life. As if we were neighbors and I was picking up some milk for her.
What I love most about this story is that I gave no thought about going the extra mile for Tricia. I wanted to do it, because I already knew she would do it for me.
