A Chance Encounter

My sister and I had a wonderful afternoon yesterday.  We geared up and moved out of our respective comfort zones and took a trip into St Petersburg to see an art glass exhibit.  We ventured out alone.  Just the two of us.

It was deemed best to arrive early so we could have a bite to eat and absorb the atmosphere of this artsy area.  We found a little deli full of atmosphere and decided to share a bottle of wine and a hot sandwich there instead of a more pricey restaurant.

A young 30something cashier waited on us and since it was early in the evening, it was slow and we had a chance to talk to him.  You never know who you might meet when you open a conversation.  Our wine was from Cupcake Vineyards in Livermore and we were surprised. We grew up nearby and hadn't know of a winery there.   As he uncorked it, he mentioned while on tour he had visited a local winery in that area.  "On tour?"  we asked.  It seems he had been a professional ice skater and had toured with several ice shows not only nationally, but internationally.  My sister Karan has traveled quite a bit and blogs Michael and Karans Excellent Adventures.  Suddenly they were exchanging travel stories about wonderful exotic cities they both had visited.

Customers came in and he took care of everyone, but continued to come back to the table as often as he could.

He is now training skaters and studying to be a nurse.  She is a retired RN.  More fun stories. He was invited to sample the wine, which he did and was quite the connoisseur.  Heck, only the fact that he was working kept us from dusting off another chair and pouring him a glass.

We each have sons also in their thirties, conversation was easy.  A chance meeting, souls enlivened.  All the more memorable because it can never be duplicated.

Then, off to the exhibit.  Just across the street.

So today I read a blog about just this sort of interaction at Lavender Dreams entitled When Someone Impresses You.  And that impressed me.  Thanks Diane!