Happy? Content?

Recently, I had lunch with someone whom I have known for many moons; however, I had never had an opportunity to have a one-on-one lunch with this someone. It is interesting how I think I know people, but I guess I don't know them as well as I'd like to believe. Well, I am glad I made the time, and I am happy with the reacquaintance of sorts.

A day prior to the aforementioned lunch, I had another lunch with a teenager and his parents. The lunch materialized because of yours truly waiting for a pizza and having a run-in with the dad. We started talking about the boys. Their boy is 2 years older than Hans. Then, the conversation led to the older generation. Eventually, the dad wanted to know what Craigley was doing. At which point, I had to let this gentleman know that Craigley and I hadn't been together for almost 3 years. He was visibly shaken, which was an unexpected reaction, and seeing such a response from a relative stranger also got me emotional. This man insisted that I meet his wife who was waiting in their car in the parking lot. So, I ended up catching up with his wife as well. She burst into tears, and it was weirdly therapeutic. I did not realize that people cared that much about me. So, I agreed to have lunch with this family.

I don't remember having a meal with an entire family by myself. I mostly chatted with the mom and their son who is 19 now. I recalled the child from when he was 6 years old. He was at ASid's school in French Immersion, and he was having a challenging time. I suggested to the parents to visit Hans' school and see if that could be a better fit for their child. And it was! The boy was there for 5 years, and he told me that those were his best school years. He also told me that he enjoyed his first year of university. He wanted to know how Hans was doing. I shared with him that Hans and I needed some time, but we are happy now. And this young man was like "but are you content?".

As a Gen Xer with 2 Gen Z kids, I get annoyed quickly when I am asked questions like that! I don't want to make any blanket statements, but it feels like these kids seem to think they are more enlightened than every generation that came before them!

So, am I content? I guess. What I concluded from 2 very different lunches was that I need to get out more and spend time with people and get updates on lives that I don't see daily. Reconnecting like that is a good reminder of how I might have impacted some lives, and it is a wonderful opportunity to allow others to impact my life.