Do you think it's a good thing to re-aquaint with people you haven't seen in 30 -40 years?

I've found Facebook to be an excellent place to keep up with old friends and distant family when you're not sure you really want to get together again. I enjoy seeing how they are doing, their families, etc, and showing them only as much of mine as I want to, little at a time. Between that and every five years high school reunions, I'm satisfied.
Not many our ages have Facebook accounts but my kids talked me into it and I haven't been sorry. I'm in contact with several people I haven't seen in many years, one guy I was in the Marine Corps with 50 years ago, and though none of us have a desire to get together, we enjoy staying in contact. If I were going to meet someone I hadn't seen or heard from in many years, I would do it at a neutral place, a restaurant for a nice lunch. Not in my home or in theirs.
As for initiating getting together after a long separation, I can think of only one person I would go out of my way to find and meet. We were good friends and he dropped out of sight right after graduation and I never heard from him again and can't find anyone who has.
 
No ..I haven't seen some of my family for 10 years ..The last time we met up was to scatter my younger sisters ashes ..the first words out of one of the brothers mouth was ..Put money in the Icecream container for the bread rolls and chicken for lunch Chris bought...No please thank you ... I was not asked if I wanted any just pay up .. Not only did they want money they wanted to make a profit ....:grrr:
 

I have a rule, if something keeps bugging my mind I will do it. If this person is someone you remember fondly and would like to see again, why not meet? If you don't you will always wonder 'what if?' If it doesn't work out, what can you possibly lose? I do agree with rider1046, "If I were going to meet someone I hadn't seen or heard from in many years, I would do it at a neutral place, a restaurant for a nice lunch. Not in my home or in theirs." Better safe than sorry.
 
My father left my mother after 30 years of marriage. She was devastated from that and moved to live near me in California at the time. She was about 72 when she went to her HS reunion in Florida. An old friend was there and they had not stayed in contact. They hit it off and got engaged ONE month later and married the next month!! I was worried about the short amount of time they had between meeting up and marrying. She couldn't understand why I didn't jump for joy right away. I was a bit in shock to be honest and just worried about her.

Turns out, she moved into his home in Ft. Lauderdale and they spent 5 glorious years together traveling all over Europe having a blast and taking lots of pictures smiling from ear to ear. They filled albums together and wrote captions under all the photos. She had many journals filled with watercolors she did from the different locations they stayed. I have some framed on my walls from France, Italy, Belgium, Spain, etc. She had wanted to visit the Holy Lands all her life so he took her there too.

He died 5 years later of cancer and she lived on into her nineties. She looked back on their time together with fondness filled with fabulous memories.
 
Lara, that was a beautiful and inspiring story. Thank you for sharing it. So happy for your mother, even if it was only 5 years.
 
Thank you PVC. She lived life with positivity and didn't let fear hold her back from experiencing all life had for her. She trusted God. I'm a believer too but I'm always, "...but what if this and what if that"....and then I think of her and try to be positive and brave...and smile.
 
I attended my 50th HS reunion, and found that I still liked the same people I liked back then, and still disliked those that I disliked back then. People's basic natures really don't change.

I found my old best friend on the internet, and we reconnected. She lived in Florida, but we managed to visit each other and had some delightful times together. Unfortunately, she died several years ago.
 
My father left my mother after 30 years of marriage. She was devastated from that and moved to live near me in California at the time. She was about 72 when she went to her HS reunion in Florida. An old friend was there and they had not stayed in contact. They hit it off and got engaged ONE month later and married the next month!! I was worried about the short amount of time they had between meeting up and marrying. She couldn't understand why I didn't jump for joy right away. I was a bit in shock to be honest and just worried about her.

Turns out, she moved into his home in Ft. Lauderdale and they spent 5 glorious years together traveling all over Europe having a blast and taking lots of pictures smiling from ear to ear. They filled albums together and wrote captions under all the photos. She had many journals filled with watercolors she did from the different locations they stayed. I have some framed on my walls from France, Italy, Belgium, Spain, etc. She had wanted to visit the Holy Lands all her life so he took her there too.


He died 5 years later of cancer and she lived on into her nineties. She looked back on their time together with fondness filled with fabulous memories.
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A superb life story ! .......... Thank you for sharing it.
 
I don't go for it. I figure if I haven't spoken to you for thirty years,then there wasn't much to go on any way.

Several years ago the phone rang and it was this guy that was in the Marines with me. This guy was an acquaintance not a friend.
First of all it kind of creeped me out that he would make such an effort to locate me after so many years. I am not a member of any memorial groups or on any roster of any kind, so it took a concentrated effort to track me down.
I was kind of rude and suspicious and gave him short thrift. Never heard from him again!
 
When I first posted I didn't realize that I was posting on a 3 year old thread. I apologize but am glad I did it anyway. I can't think of anyone in my past that I would like to reconnect with, but if I did I would not hesitate. Life gets in the way, people move, and until the internet it was almost impossible to do ''people searches'', and most people feel they will be rebuffed if they do. I still think if the person was someone you liked and enjoyed, it can't hurt to take a chance.
 
I've had several friends contact me on Facebook from way in the past like 40 some years ago. At first it was okay but then it didn't work out with one of them. One guy thought he wanted to marry me because I was his first gf. He thought I should be his last, too. Unfortunately I didn't feel the same way. He still makes a play for me on FB. I am still friends with one lady from grade school and that has worked out because we are still FB friends. I guess some times it works and some times it doesn't. I won't stop being friends with some of them.
 
I'm not sure. A few years back I connected with a very good friend from high school. We did everything together. We lost touch and when we did reconnect it was very uncomfortable. She had no children and her life was devoted to playing and watching sports with hubby. She had no interest in my kids and family and I could have cared less about the latest ball game she watched and what her bowling score was. We said our goodbyes and never got in touch again.
 
I sometimes wonder what happened to people I used to know. But never enough to actively search for them. :D
I found a website that, although not 100% correct, is the best I've found. And it's free unless you order a report. I used to have a friend a long time ago that I lost touch with and googled him but never got results. At this website I found out that he died in 2002, had stayed with the wife he was thinking about leaving, and she died 10 years after him. It even gives the clickable name of family members. So, I got my closure about what happened to him.
https://www.truepeoplesearch.com/
 
I found a website that, although not 100% correct, is the best I've found. And it's free unless you order a report. I used to have a friend a long time ago that I lost touch with and googled him but never got results. At this website I found out that he died in 2002, had stayed with the wife he was thinking about leaving, and she died 10 years after him. It even gives the clickable name of family members. So, I got my closure about what happened to him.
https://www.truepeoplesearch.com/

Thanks, but like I said... I'm not interested in searching for them.
 
The answer to this question depends on each individual--and how you parted from each other.
What were the feelings of each other? Neutral, happy, sad, apathy?

I tried contacting several old GFs and wrote one, no answer back. If she had no
interest in contacting me all these years why I should try? What to say after so many years,
especially if they live far away, a 1000 miles. Others changed their names thru marriage or I could
not find because too much time passed. Once I hired a private eye but
he could not help find her either. They have methods that we do not have.
Facebook was useless.

Better to let sleeping dogs lie.
 
Victor, try the truepeoplesearch.com that I linked above. My daughter is listed under her married name AND maiden name. I admit it's kind of creepy (for people who don't want to be found). I find it entertaining since I have no evil intentions, I tell my daughter that I'm ''stalking'' at the website.
 
People that do that are talking about all their health conditions inside the first hour. High school reunions are another thing to avoid.
 


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