When I was growing up, I had a best friend named Ellen R. She lived around the corner from me. (Well, at least close enough to walk.) I don’t remember how we met. I think we met through our mothers. When we went to High School, her mother thought that I was a bad influence and that ended our relationship. (We tried to sneak out and meet, but it just wasn’t the same.)
A few years after graduation from High School, I met up with her at the St. Marks Bar and Grill. It was a bar across the street from my St. Marks Place apartment. She was going to FIT and I was going to Hunter.
A few years after that, we connected again. This time, she had a baby girl and I was just getting married.
After that, I didn’t speak with her for a really long time. She was getting divorced and I just had my second child.
Another long period went by and we spoke again. This time, she was getting remarried and I was involved with my business.
Again, we didn’t speak for a long time, until we met up on Facebook. Facebook is a wonderful way to reconnect with people you’ve known your whole life! We’re going out to dinner Tuesday night and I’m really excited to see her again! She is an amazing person and every time we see each other we have a great time!
When Lisa Gordon, Supervisor at HJMT, told me that she was moving to Rochester. I told her that there are certain people that you meet in your life that you want to hold onto. You don’t want to loose. That is why I offered her the opportunity to open the Rochester office.
I was at a client’s office a few months ago, when the marketing person told me that she worked at Dudley Anderson and Yutsy (DAY), at the time of the merge between Ogilvy & Mather PR and DAY.
“That’s funny,” I said. “I worked at O&MPR during that time.”
She asked me if I knew, so and so and who’s a what and this one and that, and before we knew it, we both knew the same people. If I had stayed at O&MPR through the merge, I would have known her. But, I wouldn’t have the relationship that I have with my old boss, Ellen S. of Ruder Finn/PR. I was with Ellen through O&MPR, Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmpolus/PR and Ruder Finn/PR. And that’s an experience I would never trade in!
There’s also another woman who went to High School with me but I wasn’t friendly with her. We were friendly when we were in elementary school but that was that. Interestingly, she ended up going to college in NYC. I went to college in NYC. She went to Cordoza Law School. I went to Baruch College for graduate school and my roommate went to Cordoza. She moved back to Long Beach and was pregnant. I moved back to Long Beach and got pregnant. It turned out, our kids were friendly in High School and we reconnected! And, I’m glad we did!
I often think about people I’ve met along the way and think about the old Billy Joel song, Say Goodbye to Hollywood, he sings:
“So many faces in and out of my life
Some will last
Some will just be now and then
Life is a series of hellos and goodbyes…”
I remember when the song came out and at that time, I thought, this is so true…. and now, as I get older, I know it is…
