I talked to someone recently who lives in a regular place (i.e. bigger than 8,000 people, not this close to the north pole, and in a state with more people than cows) and she mentioned that all of her friends are exactly her age, with kids just the same ages as hers. She was surprised when I mentioned how different my experience has been in Middlebury.

I’m making vast generalizations here, but it seems to me that in a town like this one, you can’t have only friends who are just like you. There just aren’t enough people. So we’ve been really lucky to have friends who are all over the map.

In the past month, Matt and I have hung out with people thirty years older and twenty years younger. And not to take anything away from our wonderful peers in age and circumstance, but sometimes it’s just great to have a conversation about a life that’s very different than the one we’re immersed in right now. The excitement (and nervousness) of getting your first job, for example. Or what it’s like to wait for the arrival of your first grandchild.

It’s fun (and often very funny!) to talk and listen and remember what it was like to be at a certain point years ago, or to look forward to what’s still to come. Sometimes I get nostalgic, sometimes I’m anxious. Most often, I’m just entertained. I’m happy to be where I am right now, and I’m thankful for the connections that I make with other people of all sorts.