Strangers

Yesterday I had the lovely fortune of speaking via phone with another blogger I met via the April A to Z Challenge. We shared our career stories and swapped thoughts on blogging, writing, life, and a bit of politics.We’ve also welcomed into our home this weekend, a young classmate of our daughter who needed a place to stay for a few days between a trip to New York and a summer program in Indiana. She’s been a pleasant guest and an enjoyable visitor.I’ve been struck, once again, by how quickly strangers can become friends.We teach our children: don’t talk to strangers. We protect ourselves. We avoid ‘the other.’ Don’t talk to strangers. Yet, each acquaintance, every friend, even our best friend, was once a stranger.Strangers move in and out of our lives.Some quickly, with intense impact; others lingering, through the ebb and flow of a given moment; still others remaining for the long haul.No matter how long they stay, or how intense the encounter, each one-time stranger has potential to change who we are.Rather than avoid every stranger, should we not welcome the stranger and teach our children the stranger may be an angel unaware, that we must listen to our truth, learn to trust our intuition, protect and respect our dignity and the dignity of the other.And perhaps sometimes we should talk to strangers.Do you talk to strangers? Has a stranger recently had an impact on your life? You are welcome to join the conversation...