Those Friends We Remember

We all have those special people we meet in life. They quickly enter our lives and then become great memories. Throughout my life, I've met many interesting people from all over the world. Some I met in youth hostels, train stations, planes, and then they invited me to visit them in their country. They came into my life for a short period of time but I will never forget them.

While living in Israel, I joined a young kibbutz which had only been in existence for a couple of years. A number of people working there were on an exchange program from the army. During basic training, they were given the choice to live on a kibbutz for a couple of weeks to experience kibbutz life.

At that time, I met this really great woman soldier. I was dying to know her well, but she only spoke in Hebrew and my ability with the language was quite poor. Every day, I attempted to improve my knowledge of the language so we could exchange information. This was a difficult feat since learning languages was never easy for me.

After two arduous weeks, the night before she was to return to the army base, she turned to me and said, "Enough of this Hebrew shit, let's talk in English." Her English was excellent and I was furious with her for making me work so hard to talk to her. She laughed and said, "How else are you going to learn Hebrew unless you work for it." She was so right and I have never forgotten her.

While at a youth hostel in Israel, I met this really cool Dutch woman. She and I became friends and she visited me at the kibbutz and then later at my home in Tel Aviv. She invited me to Holland and I stayed with her for a couple of months. She drove me all around Holland and I was able to study the country well. Being half Indonesian, she was a brilliant cook. She would spend hours in the kitchen preparing any number of Indonesian dishes which were absolutely delicious.

A friend I met at the Tel Aviv University became a very close friend. After we had completed our degree, she married a South African guy and moved to Johannesburg. I returned to Canada. I tried unsuccessfully for many years to find her. Then last Christmas, I received an email from her. She had googled me and found my website and email address. Now, after 30 years, we are friends again and chat regularly on Skype. My next travel destination is South Africa.

While waiting for a train in Holland, an announcement came over the speakers advising that the train would be arriving at another platform. Beside me stood the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She had long beautiful blonde hair and the bluest eyes. Knowing I didn't understand the announcement, she offered to help me with my belongings and walked me to the correct platform. I don't know her name or anything about her but I will never forget her kindness.

While flying from Holland back to Canada, I sat beside a lovely Syrian woman my age and her younger brother. We talked the whole trip and became fast friends. She lived in Toronto and we met a number of times. She loved walking around the Eaton's Centre and chose clothing stores much too expensive for me. She came from a rich and well-educated family. We remained friends for a few years until she married and returned to Syria.

My novel That Truthful Place about ten children who develop telepathy is now available. You can buy it on Amazon.ca or Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk

have fun,
patty
www.pattylesser.com
@PattyLesser