I was never the popular girl in school. I wasn’t unpopular either, at least I don’t think so. I always had friends and I didn’t worry about being part of an “in” crowd. In fact the only “in” crowd I was really aware of were a couple of girls a few years younger than me who decided that they enjoyed being bottle blondes. Whatever.

I had fun in school. I liked high school, in spite of a few difficult times. Overall, it was a blast, and I made great friends who I still keep in touch with.

That’s saying a lot, for me. I’m not great at keeping in touch. Weird for someone who enjoys writing, but true. I’m not big on making phone calls, and writing letters has pretty much gone the way of the dinosaur for me, which is too bad. I used to write lots of them, and receive them too. That’s ancient history now. Now it’s all about social media.

Through the modern miracle of Facebook I still keep in touch with friends from as far back as kindergarten and yes, even nursery school. I don’t have oodles of Facebook friends, but I like the ones I have. I don’t add new ones often, since at heart I’m pretty much an introvert, so I don’t collect friends as easily as someone more extraverted might. That’s why I was so surprised last weekend to receive not one, not two, not three, but four friend requests. My mind was blown.

Let me explain. None of those four individuals know each other. One lives in New Jersey, one in Texas, and two in Arizona. I know them from completely different parts of my life, and I had only seen one of them within the past week, but I don’t think we said more than “hello” on that occasion, simply due to circumstances.

Why any of these people thought to themselves that they should hear more from me is beyond my imagination, but I’m glad they did. These are people I like, and would like to be in closer contact with. Now that we’re “friends” that will be easier. I’ve already gotten caught up with one of them through pictures and “chatted” with another via messages. What a treat.

Whatever the reason, I’m glad I was on their minds over the last few days. It’s been a treat to reconnect, and an unexpected surprise. When someone reaches out to you, it makes you feel as though you count, and everyone wants to count. Thanks to my four “new” friends more making me count.