Faces and Names

One of the great perks of our travels is that we meet lots of people. However, I am awful at remembering names with their faces. As a result, it came as no surprise to me when a lovely Asian couple approached me after our recent performance in Augusta, GA and I thought to myself, "They sure look familiar!"

My next thought was, "“Uh-oh, what are their names and how do I know them?"”

At this point in such situations, I usually have to make a decision: do I smile and pretend to know these people, or should I come right out and ask them who they are (in a charming manner)? In this scenario, I chose the latter.

"“I'm sorry, you look very familiar, but how do I know you?"

The woman smiled at me gratefully. "“I'’m so glad you said that! I wasn'’t sure if you'd remember me!"

Whew. Saved from looking like a complete idiot, I eagerly awaited her response. Was it a concert elsewhere? I racked my brain furiously. She teased me a bit as she paused and peered at me expectantly. I was not about to start guessing because I hate guessing games (and am terrible at them).

"“Your father and I are first cousins. You stayed with my brother and me in Toronto when you were very young. I'’m Sandy!"”

Whoa. This was not what I had expected. She is my second-cousin? Wow. Aside from my aunt and uncle in Atlanta, I was not aware I had more relatives living in Georgia! This was totally unexpected and caught me off guard, as I had expected her to say that we had met at a concert in a different city. I was pretty excited to see her and her husband, Joe, at my concert, as I do not have a lot of relatives in North America. As it turned out, Sandy remembered my name (I certainly look different from when she last saw me, when I was about eight years old) and saw it in some publicity materials for the concert. I guess she decided to surprise me and show up at the concert!

When I later spoke to my father (actually, instant messaging him on Skype -- a wonderful program, by the way), he hadn'’t even known that his cousin Sandy had moved to Georgia! He was quite delighted to hear about my encounter with her.

I guess an additional bonus to all our traveling can lead to surprise meetings with long-lost relatives!