For near 25 years, since 1985, Susan and I had very little contact. I sent her a few letters here and there – I heard nothing back from her – and that was it for 18 years. I reached out to Susan in late December 2002, and we traded a handful of emails, but she wrote that it was incredibly weird to be in touch again, denied her own existence, and took off running. Afterward I heard nothing at all from Susan until she sent a couple random notes in early 2008, followed by more silence. No contact – zero. I chalked it up, and life went on.
Until 2010.
On February 14, Susan replied to the birthday wishes I send her each year. Understand me, I was ecstatic to hear from her, but I’d been down that road before with her, and when I replied and did not hear again from her after several weeks and months I thought she was gone again… and then just by happenstance in mid-April I took a look at my inbox on YouTube and saw a reply, from her daughter’s account dated February 27, to my email. I wonder what it was she was thinking when I took so long to reply to that note. Since that date, Susan has sent me over sixty separate notes. What made her decide, now nearly a year ago, that it was time?
Regardless – I’m just happy that it happened.