An Unexpected Reunion

When the doorbell rang around noon today, Heidi and I looked at each other. "Who could that be?" she said.

"You answer it!" I replied over Lucy's barking.

Heidi put Lucy in her place and headed to the door. I listened intently from my chair as she opened it, invisible to whoever might be out there. "Is it Heidi?" a woman's voice asked. "You might not remember us, but we used to live right over there. We're Jennie and Matt and Kelsey."

I jumped up and joined Heidi at the door. The people standing there had been our across-the-way neighbors when we first moved in here back in 1999. They had put their place on the market and moved down to southwestern Virginia shortly after the attacks on September 11, 2001, and we hadn't seen them for over 20 years.

I can't explain the elation I felt, but the hugs we gave each other were heartfelt and lingering. We had never been particularly close, but they were kind and friendly neighbors. Jennie and Matt used to hang out on their patio, which faced our front door, and we would chat often as we came and went. Once when Heidi's parents came for Thanksgiving, they stayed over there because Jennie and Matt were out of town for the holiday. "I still have that star-shaped basket your mom left with all the thank-you goodies in it," Jennie told us.

"That's where that came from?" asked Matt.

Back then Kelsey had been a toddler, and we watched her a couple of times. Now the 26-year-old woman standing in our hallway asked if we still had the magnetic marble run on our fridge. "It's at school!" I laughed as her mom explained that she had looked all over for one because Kelsey had liked ours so much. 

For some reason, I am often reminded of the image of their cute little calico kitten sitting in the front window meowing at me. I'm usually pretty good with names, but for the life of me, I have not been able to remember that cat's. It is exceedingly vexatious whenever I think about it, like an itch I can't scratch.

When Kelsey stooped down to pet Tibby, I took my opportunity. "Her name was Briar," Jennie told me.

Their place has turned over at least six times since they left, and is worth more than double what they sold it for. "They were worried we wouldn't be able to sell it at all after 9-11," Kelsey told me as we stood outside waiting for the others to join us for a group photo. She looked around and sighed. "I do remember it here a little bit," she said. "It's so peaceful and pretty." She smiled. "I'm so glad y'all are still here."

"Me, too," I said. "Me, too."