You've Got Mail

I don't have AOL, I don't even know if the tag and chime still happens, but I hear it each time I log on and see that yes, there is mail.

A lovely lady views my profile or adds a note, I get an email notice. I do a mental jig and get myself on over there to read the message. Sometimes worth the trip, sometimes not, still, the getting is good. A respond is always warranted despite my initial reaction to the greeter. Some stick and some don't for whatever reason. Like meeting folks in person in those early stages, waiting for that new message is not unlike waiting for the phone to ring. In these early stages, the level of investment is low and while unsettling and frustrating, not hearing the chime isn't devastating (almost)

Blogging is a different realm altogether. You read a blog for weeks, months even. You peruse the archives. You build a relationship of sorts, sometimes, even before your first comment. Then, the blogger writes something that moves in a way that extends beyond the commenting box. You send an email and they respond. Sometimes it is a one shot deal. Sometimes emails and / or further comments lead to a deeper connection. A relationship.

You are tethered to each other by emotions and an ISP. These virtual friendships are real. They feed the soul like any other. The first flurry of emails back and forth are intense, full of discoveries, deeper thoughts, jokes. You feel the connection deepen. You offer truths, you are privy to truths. You start to move closer to...friendship. Then silence. No mail. No chimes.

The immediate reaction is a bit of concern-but not too much. Even if your routine has been to email every day or every other day, things happen that might keep a body from emailing. More days past, another of your missive goes unanswered and your concern grows deeper. Not yet friends, in that total embodiment of the word, you don't have any other connection. No other recourse, yet. Your concern grows deeper. You start to question where you might have mis-stepped. You begin to wonder, then understand, then you don't. Was it me? Or is it something else? Out of touch, out of the loop. Out of sorts.

After many days, weeks of joyful noises, I've experienced the sounds of silence from two budding friends. Beside missing the humor, warmth and encouragement, I was concerned, deeply, for them. One has since chimed. And though the contact is indeed welcomed, the reality, explanation of the silence leads to deeper concern. My friend is hurting and there isn't much I can do except answer her chime. *Legs*, this woo woo is for you. You are in my heart and on my mind.

The other buddy remains silent. *Maria Evans* you too are in my heart and on my mind, this spiggle is for you.

May peace be with you both.