The first time I bumped into someone I know

I couldn't go through a day in Vermont without running into someone I knew at the bank, post office, grocery store, or even driving down the road. Some people I recognized but didn't know their name; we would say hello and share a smile. The people at the bank and post office knew my name, and we'd talk about the weather or local news. Or I'd run into friends and we'd stop and chat so that I almost forgot why I walked into that particular store in the first place.

None of that has happened since July 26th when we left Vermont on our motorcycle for Arizona. It seems that folks in Prescott are genuinely friendly:  people on the street make eye contact and say  hello, we've had conversations with the folks sitting at the next table when we went out to dinner, and I've talked briefly with neighbors walking their dogs.

Today was the first day I bumped into someone I knew and we had a conversation. We met Mike when we first walked on the Peavine Trail, an old railroad bed that's now a beautiful, flat trail that winds through the granite dells around Watson Lake. It turned out he and his wife were in the process of moving to Prescott from Boston, and we chatted about moving across the country, looking for a house, and running.

Today I took Carole, one of my neighbors to the Peavine to walk. She's only lived here since June and hadn't heard of the Peavine. As we started off on the trail I recognized Mike coming the opposite direction. We said hello, he decided to walk with us, and we walked and talked for the next two miles.

Until we moved across the country, I took knowing people and the ability to have spur of the moment conversations for granted. I never had to make an effort to meet people and chat, and stopping to talk simply became part of the day. Here I make an effort to say hello and get to know people, to make a connection.

Carole and I plan to walk together again, and Mike suggested we make plans to hike in Sedona. I feel like I'm in the middle of a K'Nex toys project; meeting new people, making a connection, and introducing a new friend to someone else.