Encounter in the same timezone!

Sunday morning, a lovely day is just starting. The sun is lightning up the world, but isn’t powerful enough to provide us with a comfortable feeling. I regret leaving my scarf at home. I’m in the heart of Amsterdam with my boyfriend waiting for the moment that I’ve been looking forward to for some time. An encounter with my Australian friend and sponsor of my book. Finally I get a message saying that he’s arrived! I walk over to the spot where he is waiting and jump right in front of him. We fall into each other’s arms for a big hug. It was like hugging someone I’ve known all my life.

About a year ago I met him on the Facebook page of the ambassadors from Life Vest Inside. One day he pressed the button to make a phone call on Messenger by accident. Suddenly I found myself talking to someone in Australia! It was like he was calling from just a few blocks down the road. Many conversations followed. We shared the good and the bad. John became part of my life. I had messaged him jokingly that now there was just one hour time difference between us, when he arrived in the UK. Normally that would be 10 hours and that takes some creativity in communication.

My book was in my handbag and I couldn’t wait to give it to John. The first printed copy in English was dedicated to him. John had read most of the chapters, because he helped me to edit the English version. Every time he send some feedback he would add: “I love Betty!” John had become a big fan of my little ego and he enjoyed reading every chapter about her.

With only a few hours to spend in Amsterdam, we jumped on a canal boat to give John a small impression of the city. There I was, with two men on a boat. One tourist and one man with a new toy… a brand new camera. Get the picture? One was constantly hanging out of the window, the other one was moving about on the boat to get that once special picture before the boat moved on.

It feels funny to walk in Amsterdam accompanied by a tourist, because you won’t find me hanging around in Amsterdam unless I have some specific business to attend there. We hopped off the ‘hop-on-hop-off-boat’ near the Leidse Square. Pancakes are a must-eat if you are going for the typical Dutch cuisine. We ended up in a small place and shared the experience with John.

A ride on the tram brought us back to the Central Station. We convinced John that he needed to eat a ‘kroket’ a typical Dutch snack filled with deep-fried ragout coated with bread crumbs…

There we were, a few hours later, back at the bus stop.  “I hate goodbye” Johns says as he gives me a huge hug for the second time. I know him… He never knows how to end a call and keeps talking until I finally hang up.

As I take of my shoes that night and my step calculator tells me I reached over 10.000 steps, I’m in a blurry state. It really happened! I met my Australian friend!

Today he starts his journey back to Australia. Twenty-four hours travelling! Things go back to normal… There’ll be ten hours’ time difference between us maybe will meet him and his girlfriend in the summer… somewhere in Europe. Sometimes you meet people who instantly take up a place in your heart. John is one of those people.

What a beautiful encounter!