You know how you have those friends who you haven't seen for awhile and you can just pick right back up from wherever you left off? It doesn't matter how much time has gone by, your friendship seems exactly the same as it was the last time you saw each other. My friend Fornadel is like this. We've been friends for going on 20 years (!!) and sometimes we run away to far corners of the earth and don't see each other for awhile, but it doesn't matter. When we do see each other again we start laughing and telling the same jokes we did last time we caught up. She inevitably starts getting under my skin and annoying me like noone else can, but that's why I love her.
There are also those kinds of friends who you meet and know you will be friends at hello. Something about their smile or general presence draws you to that person. My cousin Charlotte was like this, which might be a little unfair since we are related. I did not formally meet my cousin Charlotte until 3 years ago when she agreed to let me come stay with her in South Africa. The minute she said hello, I knew we would hit it off. She had fun and adventure written all over her. I don't think we stopped talking the entire week I was there and we had more than our share of adventures.
Clare Gunns is both of these kind of friends. In 2005 I was student in Belgium in desperate need of a sport to replace the void of college basketball. I met Gunnsy on the rugby field where she was commanding every one's attention. Off the field you often heard her before you saw her and she occasionally would convince bartenders that, yes, it was a good idea for all the rugby girls to be dancing on tables at their pub at 4am. Clearly you can see why I wanted to be her friend. We became friends because of rugby, but got to know each other during after game drink ups and shopping trips to Germany. For whatever reason, she put up with the little American girl visiting Belgium for less than 6 months.
Last weekend, after 10 years of somewhat poor communication, I met up with Gunnsy once again in Belgium. During our emails before my trip she tried to tell me that she had "changed" and we would probably not be dancing on tables at 4am this go around. She picked me up at the airport and it was like no time had past. She was still the same Gunns with her loud, happy laugh and welcoming smile. But there was a sadness in her eyes, like I sometimes see in others and my own. The sadness that reflects love and loss. Its like a shadow of unfortunate circumstance that never leaves your face and makes you only more aware of our own mortality.
She has 2 adorable little boys now and wonderful, rugby husband (they really are the best). Over the weekend we caught up about the decade of life that had past since we last saw eachother. I told her about school, Rocco, rugby and retirement and losing my best friend. She told me about school (She is a teacher), Jim (husband), rugby (crazy girl is still playing from time to time and she is X amount of years older than me!) and her own personal losses. We laughed (and maybe cried a little), drank way less beer than we used to and she even played rugby while I babysat her kids on the sidelines.
So maybe some things have changed, but it was great to see that after a decade our friendship hadn't really changed. Deep down she is still the same old Gunnsy and I'm the same old Hanks, we both just have a few extra layers of life on top.
Me and Baby Ted
Gunns and Elliot
Me and baby Ted
Daddy Jim and baby Ted
Phew! That was deep, eh? So the trip from Belgium to London-town was...interesting. I took a bus because it was only 18 euro as opposed to the $150 flight or train. The bus ticket email said I should be there an hour early for my 2pm bus. Of course the bus didn't arrive until 230pm. Cute. Once on the bus we traveled uneventfully to the border between France and the UK i.e. the channel. This is where things got interesting. First, I noticed the guy behind me had an American accent so we struck up a conversation in the immigration line. He said he was studying in Leeds for the semester so I asked where he went to undergrad in the states. University of Wisconsin, he said. Seriously?! What are the odds?! So we talked about the being a little sad that we were missing all the good weather at the terrace, but then reminded ourselves we were in Europe.
After all the passport mayhem (they made us get off the bus twice and take ALL of luggage with us and of course I overpacked and have 2 large wheely suitcases. You'd think they'd be a little more considerate of a girl and her boots...) we loaded on the bus and were all ready to go. Except one family. There was a Dad and his 3-4 kids not on the bus and their many bags outside of the bus. The bus driver was explaining something to them and then all of the sudden slammed all of the doors shut to all the baggage compartments below the bus. The 3-4 children all began wailing. The dad looked supremely pissed off and stormed back into the immigration buidling leaving one little boy sobbing next to the bus and the older kids storming around the bus shouting and crying. What the...?
This scene went on for another 45 minutes (seriously) with the bus driver opening and closing the doors to the baggage compartment and pointing at all of their bags. There was also a lot of hand clasping together and shaking clasped hands at bus driver clearly pleading something. No one knew what was going on, but obviously everyone on the bus was interested, mostly because the bus was hot and we were already late and this obviously wasn't helping. Finally 2 of the bags were tossed aside and the rest loaded on the bus. Dad and kids boarded and looked like they had just lost a family member. Someone got on and whispered "that was all over frozen food." Wow.
I started working in London and Richmond yesterday with BPAS. All going really well so far, but I am pretty sure I feel a soapbox rant coming on in the future, so get ready...Cheerio for now!
There are also those kinds of friends who you meet and know you will be friends at hello. Something about their smile or general presence draws you to that person. My cousin Charlotte was like this, which might be a little unfair since we are related. I did not formally meet my cousin Charlotte until 3 years ago when she agreed to let me come stay with her in South Africa. The minute she said hello, I knew we would hit it off. She had fun and adventure written all over her. I don't think we stopped talking the entire week I was there and we had more than our share of adventures.
Clare Gunns is both of these kind of friends. In 2005 I was student in Belgium in desperate need of a sport to replace the void of college basketball. I met Gunnsy on the rugby field where she was commanding every one's attention. Off the field you often heard her before you saw her and she occasionally would convince bartenders that, yes, it was a good idea for all the rugby girls to be dancing on tables at their pub at 4am. Clearly you can see why I wanted to be her friend. We became friends because of rugby, but got to know each other during after game drink ups and shopping trips to Germany. For whatever reason, she put up with the little American girl visiting Belgium for less than 6 months.
Last weekend, after 10 years of somewhat poor communication, I met up with Gunnsy once again in Belgium. During our emails before my trip she tried to tell me that she had "changed" and we would probably not be dancing on tables at 4am this go around. She picked me up at the airport and it was like no time had past. She was still the same Gunns with her loud, happy laugh and welcoming smile. But there was a sadness in her eyes, like I sometimes see in others and my own. The sadness that reflects love and loss. Its like a shadow of unfortunate circumstance that never leaves your face and makes you only more aware of our own mortality.
She has 2 adorable little boys now and wonderful, rugby husband (they really are the best). Over the weekend we caught up about the decade of life that had past since we last saw eachother. I told her about school, Rocco, rugby and retirement and losing my best friend. She told me about school (She is a teacher), Jim (husband), rugby (crazy girl is still playing from time to time and she is X amount of years older than me!) and her own personal losses. We laughed (and maybe cried a little), drank way less beer than we used to and she even played rugby while I babysat her kids on the sidelines.
So maybe some things have changed, but it was great to see that after a decade our friendship hadn't really changed. Deep down she is still the same old Gunnsy and I'm the same old Hanks, we both just have a few extra layers of life on top.
Phew! That was deep, eh? So the trip from Belgium to London-town was...interesting. I took a bus because it was only 18 euro as opposed to the $150 flight or train. The bus ticket email said I should be there an hour early for my 2pm bus. Of course the bus didn't arrive until 230pm. Cute. Once on the bus we traveled uneventfully to the border between France and the UK i.e. the channel. This is where things got interesting. First, I noticed the guy behind me had an American accent so we struck up a conversation in the immigration line. He said he was studying in Leeds for the semester so I asked where he went to undergrad in the states. University of Wisconsin, he said. Seriously?! What are the odds?! So we talked about the being a little sad that we were missing all the good weather at the terrace, but then reminded ourselves we were in Europe.
After all the passport mayhem (they made us get off the bus twice and take ALL of luggage with us and of course I overpacked and have 2 large wheely suitcases. You'd think they'd be a little more considerate of a girl and her boots...) we loaded on the bus and were all ready to go. Except one family. There was a Dad and his 3-4 kids not on the bus and their many bags outside of the bus. The bus driver was explaining something to them and then all of the sudden slammed all of the doors shut to all the baggage compartments below the bus. The 3-4 children all began wailing. The dad looked supremely pissed off and stormed back into the immigration buidling leaving one little boy sobbing next to the bus and the older kids storming around the bus shouting and crying. What the...?
This scene went on for another 45 minutes (seriously) with the bus driver opening and closing the doors to the baggage compartment and pointing at all of their bags. There was also a lot of hand clasping together and shaking clasped hands at bus driver clearly pleading something. No one knew what was going on, but obviously everyone on the bus was interested, mostly because the bus was hot and we were already late and this obviously wasn't helping. Finally 2 of the bags were tossed aside and the rest loaded on the bus. Dad and kids boarded and looked like they had just lost a family member. Someone got on and whispered "that was all over frozen food." Wow.
I started working in London and Richmond yesterday with BPAS. All going really well so far, but I am pretty sure I feel a soapbox rant coming on in the future, so get ready...Cheerio for now!
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