Colleen Crossley
Special to the Tribune
I find coincidences interesting, that coming together of seemingly unrelated people at surprising moments, that “six degrees of separation” idea.
A few minutes on either side of the moment would likely completely change that very moment, itself – what a concept!
I had one of those moments and I’m thinking telling you about it might increase your awareness of the same in your own life.
When I moved to Williams Lake almost two decades ago, I was working in an organization that had a very large volunteer pool of specially-trained individuals.
One day I agreed to sit at the receptionist’s desk while she had a break.
After a few quiet minutes, a young lady walked in, new to town and interested in volunteering for the organization.
She had been appropriately-trained elsewhere and had the qualifications required so I started to make a note of her contact information.
I asked her last name and, when she said “Morse,” I told her that had been my maiden name – funny.
I asked her if she spelled her name “Morris” or “Morse” and she said Morse – interesting.
We laughed at how often it was spelled the “wrong” way. We went on with the forms and, when I noted her previous address as Nova Scotia, I told her my Dad’s whole family had come from Nova Scotia.
We joked that we might even be related. We started talking more and ……. sure enough, we are related!
She called relatives in Nova Scotia who had been compiling a family tree and it turned out she is my ninth cousin.
What a great discovery and the best part was the realization that, had it been minutes before or after the receptionist’s break, I would not have met her or known anything about her except, perhaps, her first name, the way volunteers were referred to in the organization.
We were intrigued by the fact that, since my job required minimal volunteer contact, if she had come to the agency a few minutes earlier or later, we would never have made the family connections.
One more quick one … when I visit my son, I have to take a ferry.
On one visit, I was placed on the ferry, both going and coming back, in exactly (no kidding) the same spot – one car back from the front of the boat and two cars in from the centre post on the second car deck! In view of the complete randomness of ferry loading, it was almost spooky.
