If You Really Want to Do It, You Make It Happen...

I alluded in an earlier post (click here) to the fact that being "busy," seems to be the current buzzword for the A-i-T generation. It is not longer a transient state or sporadic event, but has somehow metamorphosed into an actual state of being. These days, the question "how are you," seems to more often elicit the response of "busy," which ideally should only refer to work, rather than answering how your life outside your cubicle or classroom is going. I think we could all see our friends (new and old) much more often if we stopped hiding behind this buzzword, which is arguably just a weak excuse and a way to be non-committal and blow people off...whether we like them or not (unless true). When any A-i-T wants to do something, they take the necessary steps to make it happen. It doesn't matter if it's a trip to Japan or the cafe that is the half-way point between where you and your friend(s) live. Why should life get in the way of your friendships...? 

Last week I was browsing my Facebook homepage when I came across recent pictures of some old friends. By old, I don't mean from college or even high school. I'm talking about people I've known since middle and elementary school -- some literally since first grade. We all attended the United Nations International School (affectionately known as UNIS) for the better part of our childhood. Some of us even proudly carry the title of "survivor," a badge of honor given to those who went through UNIS from kindergarten all the way to 12th grade -- can you imagine?!?! I was there from first grade through 10th, and would have made it all the way (minus the "survivor" badge) had I not moved home to Ghana.

As I clicked through an album from a recent gathering I saw many old but familiar faces, and found myself overcome with a wave of nostalgia. I'm only 26 but sadly possess the new found ability to say that I hadn't seen some of these people in ten years. What struck me even more than my emotional reaction was a feeling of admiration for the fact that the UNIS family was still very much together -- and I use the word "family" with purpose. This group of people has grown together in every sense, from the physical to the relational, and therefore there are no judgments. They met each other as snot-nosed kindergarters/elementary kids, navigated the awkward middle school phase, and blossomed into "no one on the corner had swagger like us" high schoolers. There is next to nothing that they don't know about each other, haven't seen, done, or experienced together and they therefore have a bond that once established, I doubt can ever be broken, by time, space, or geography. When I was done looking at that album, all I wanted was to get plugged back in!

I immediately sent one of my good friends in the pictures a facebook message basically saying that I couldn't remember the last time that I had seen him so we needed to fix that. He agreed, and in the time it takes to post a really witty status update, we had set a time and place to meet the following week. We met this past Tuesday for a drink at chill bar on the upper east side and picked up right where we left off, literally ten years ago. We talked about the new, reminisced about the old (T.R.O.Y. - for my hip-hop heads) and just caught up on life in general. About 30 minutes into our chat, guess who rolls in, but two more blasts from my UNIS past, turning this face-to-face meeting into a full on mini-reunion! One of the guys who walked in the door was actually in my first grade class, and the other one suffered with me through an ogre of a teacher in third grade, and we're not talking Shrek!

All in all, it was a great time and none of it would have happened had I not sent that email. Let us not forget, however, it takes two to play catch. My friend and I wanted to meet up and we made it happen. During our conversation, we even talked about how hard it can be to see your friends living in a busy metropolis like NYC, but we both realized and said: "If you really want to do it, you make it happen!" 

Adults-in-Training, I dare/challenge you to email, text, or call an old friend(s) that you haven't seen/spoken to in a while and arrange to meet and see what happens... 

I'll be playing indoor soccer for free in the UNIS gym with my old friend starting this Sunday thanks to this meet-up...Your friends are your blessings...Count 'em! 

Peace,
A-i-T