An E-Mail That Changed My Life

{Me and Dion}
You may be asking yourself, how can an e-mail change one’s life? In order for me to tell you about this particular call to write, I would need to back up a little.

One cold winter night a group of friends and I got together to go to a professional hockey game. We were going to see my favorite team, the New York Rangers, at the world famous arena, Madison Square Garden. It was originally to be a boy’s night out, but a couple of the guys had cancelled at the last minute. I got a “B-List” offer to go to the game with my other female friend, Elze. I originally declined the offer and was fairly adamant in my response stating “I am nobody’s second choice.” My stubbornness and pride almost got in the way.

However, after much discussion, pleading and borderline begging, Elze managed to convince me to go. I still had a sense that I was compromising my standards, as I was not originally invited. The tickets were cheap and we would be in the third row from the back of the arena. This was beyond nosebleed and above the lights. To be honest, I am deeply afraid of heights. The crowd is also known to be extremely rowdy, yet entertaining, if the game got out of hand. It was the middle of the week, and I know that it would be a late night with this party crew of people.

All signs indicated I should have said “No.” But this was the New York Rangers!

This outing took a different turn than I expected. One of my male friends, Earl, had met up with a childhood buddy of his. Rather than paying attention to what was going on during the game (lots of scoring and fights!), Earl and his friend were hanging out at the back of the arena with a bunch of high school buddies, unbeknownst to me. That is, until Elze and I went up to the concession stand to grab a drink. As we headed up the aisle, I was stopped by Earl and his group of friends. I had gotten the attention of his childhood friend, Dion, who was dressed in a suit, white shirt and tie. Not my typical type of guy, but we started conversation. My first comment to him was “Are you a lawyer? Because you look like a lawyer.” After about a half hour of direct dialogue and ignoring all the others gathered in the group, we realized we had so much in common, laughed a lot, and he boldly asked me if I was seeing anyone. I coyly said “Not really.” He called me out on it by saying “Not really? What exactly does that mean?” He chuckled and then asked me if I would like to go out on a date. I was thinking “Sure, I guess he is nice enough and not as stuffy as he looks in the suit. At the very least, I get a night out with some laughs and a good meal.”

For about two weeks after we met on that fateful January winter evening, we ended up going on a couple of other dates, always after work and for dinner. It was a safe way of ending an evening, by heading in our different directions. Then after the third or fourth date, we seemed to hit an impasse on the views of relationships. We did not talk for the next two weeks. All communication stopped. Not a call, email, or text message. I found that really strange as we had developed a very close bond in a very short time. I had started to miss him and the laughter we shared. Neither of us had tried to reach out to the other. He seemed to be as stubborn as I. So I thought, “What am I to do? I really can’t stop thinking about this guy.” The fact that Valentine’s Day was the following week did NOT help the situation, seeing all the displays of love around New York City. Come on, could I have gotten anymore signs thrown in my face?

I still debated on calling, but ultimately, I decided I did not have the courage to do that. So I went with a brief e-mail instead. “Hello Dion, just sending a quick note hoping all is well.” The moment he received this e-mail, he called! I was so giddy, trying to play it cool, but my heart was skipping a beat. We chatted a little and decided to get together for dinner.

At dinner, we realized that it was a miscommunication/misunderstanding between the both of us. He didn’t think I was interested in him as someone to be in a relationship with. He told me how much he liked me, and was attracted to me. But he feared that I did not have the same perspective and direction for our relationship. He felt I just wanted to be friends. We both were actually on the same wave length of thoughts.

One valuable lesson I learned and have been able to pass on to my girls is that you should never let fear or pride get in your way, especially in the name of love. Sometimes we need to swallow our pride, but swallowing your pride does not mean losing your dignity. Then I begin to share this story with them, so much so, that they tend to interrupt me and finish the story for me. We all laugh after, but the girls do take it all in and to heart. My girls who are of dating age have shared stories how my advice has been able to help them and their friends. This is very touching for a mother to hear, knowing that my girls do listen!

Dion and I have been together ever since the e-mail and I think of the “call to write” often; almost every day as a matter of fact. Dion is still here in my life to kiss good morning, goodbye and good night as my husband and best friend. We have an openness that allows us to always say what’s on our mind. If I try and let pride and my stubbornness win over my emotions, he is very quick to stop me in my tracks by calling me out on it. This helps avoid potential lost opportunities, like finding a great husband and best friend.

Sometimes a call to write is the easiest form of communication to overcome, that we, as humans, make mistakes and hurt feelings. We must remember there could be a call to write for you to reach out to someone you care about, miss or apologize for any past misunderstandings.
Remember my story and think about what a tremendous loss I would have had it were not for that one brief e-mail reaching out. Today, I can honestly say we are still inseparable and both feel like kids who are still dating. If I did not have the desire and initiative to make the effort to write him that e-mail, I would not be so happy with my five daughters and my ever loving husband, Dion.

our five girls. (L-R: Bottom: Kaitlin,Kyli and Debi, Top: Ali and Stina, )

"All that could have been missed if it wasn’t for that
e-mail!"

I've truly been blessed