My lunch for this week was with someone I met through a chance encounter. Her eldest daughter was new to the swim team. One of the coaches said she hoped to join a carpool. I was in a situation where I could help with the rides. Therefore, I offered myself and the other mom in my carpool up for the job. Not only did we gain some sanity for the carpool, my daughter gained a friend, and I gained a whiskey pal. Everybody wins!

I met Mindi almost 2 years ago. Her daughter Abbey switched to our club team and knew no one. Coach Grace asked at a board meeting if anyone could help with the carpool. From there it all grew. Mindi or my friend Cindy would take the 3 girls to practice and I would always pick them up. It was not as much of a bother as one would think. In fact, I quite enjoyed it. There was always giggling, laughing and sharing in my car. I got to experience a wondrous side of teenage girls that is rarely seen. I relished in the joy they brought each other. The encouragement and the camaraderie made me smile. Teenage girls are often depicted as mean to the point of cruel. That was definitely not the case with these three.

Eventually, the moms all somewhat retired from the carpool as my son was back from high school swim and was heading to the same pool. It was a little bit of a sad moment. I did enjoy talking with the girls and getting to know them better. Though I did not miss the drive. Give and take, right?

While I got to know the three girls well, the unfortunate side-effect was that basically my only interaction with Mindi was to confirm something about the carpool. That was until we began to see we had some common themes (i.e. can’t make the carpool, I’m out of town for a race OR I am traveling with my husband, etc.) We slowly discovered we had a lot of common interests. My favorite being that somehow we stumbled upon the fact that each of us has an affinity for whiskey. Now there is something to talk a lot about!

Through a series of attempts and near chances, we tried to have lunch or happy hour. Ultimately one or the other would have to cancel for an assortment of reasons. When we finally figured that we could make lunch work, we were both thrilled.

Our lunch was spent catching up on the girls and their summer activities. I couldn’t wait to hear more about Abbey and her incredible accomplishment. Abbey qualified for the Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru. The games will be held in a couple of weeks. Abbey is a para-swimmer because she is a Little Person. What is most impressive and still leaves my jaw gaping – she is only one of 35 nationwide para swimmers to qualify for the games. Truly I had greatness in my carpool.

What I didn’t realize that I had in common with Mindi was a mutual love for traveling. We talked about different places we visited either with someone or alone. I enjoyed comparing notes with her on places to see. It sounded like we both have that inner adventurous spirit. The part that not a lot of people understand is that we are each comfortable with traveling alone. It was kind of humorous telling stories of how aghast people would be when they heard we traveled alone.

With three very active children and a small farm, Mindi has a very busy household. I recall a conversation we once had about how we ‘last minute’ things from time to time. While most people are none the wiser, it’s still not without our cringing and a sense of ‘next time I will be more organized.’ (Yeah, right, as if!) One of the qualities I admire about Mindi is that she seems to have a ‘there is always room for one more’ approach to life. She and her husband are well into the process of expanding their family through adoption. I think it is a pretty cool option for them.

We talked about one of our hobbies we share, running. Again, we somehow related back to travel. Talking about how we enjoyed traveling with running buddies. Laughing about how we all start at the same point and do everything except cross the finish line together. Regardless of when we finish, there will always be beer and burgers afterwards!

My hope is that you have someone like Mindi in your life. Someone who shows up by chance. Someone who opens your eyes to new worlds. A person whom when you realize that you have a lot in common with them, your interests feel wonderful and more brilliant.

Until next week…

Peace. Love and Rock n Roll…