It's a Small World

When you hear people say, "It's a Small World After All," they are either trying to offer commentary on the interconnectedness of the world, or they are telling you they are in the fifth level of hell. The "It's a Small World" ride at Walt Disney is as much fun as hemroids on a bike ride. The only difference is that I have been on the Disney ride.

The "Small World" saying is crazy in how true it is. The further you venture from home, the more amazing it becomes. When I was a junior in college I had two of these moment while living in Australia for a semester. The first was while we were walking around a mall in Sydney, Austraila and saw an Iowa Cyclones t-shirt. This was not only amazing seeing a bit of home that far away totally at random, but even more amazing because they can't sell Iowa State gear in Iowa! What the hell was it doing abroad?

Funny story about Iowa State:
My good friend Lydia went to Iowa State and when she came home to visit one time I asked how school was and if she had a boyfriend there yet. She laughed and said that school was good, and the male/ female ratio was so wacked that even her ugly friends had boyfriends. That should tell you everything you need to know. DON'T GO TO IOWA STATE.

The other "small world" story from that semester was that I sat down in class the first day next to the first pretty blonde I saw. When I introduced myself I realized that she had the same accent I had, and was in fact from Iowa Falls, IA. Iowa Falls is about a half hour from Hampton, where I grew up. We laughed and became good friends. About 2 years later I stood in the living room of the man, Carrol, that would marry my Grandma Sanders after my Grandpa Leonard had passed. (Grandpa Leonard was one of the cool dudes of all time by the way.) While looking at Carrol's family photos I said, "Mom, that looks just like...." as Carroll pointed over my shoulder and said, "and this is my granddaughter Kandice" who just happened to be the girl I had sat in class next to. Months late at their wedding we shared a laugh at the irony of it all.

There is one last small world story, and it all ties together nicely here. When I was a kid my Grandpa Sanders used to tell a story about the time that he and a few National Guard buddies stole two tanks to race. Grandpa had removed the governor (small device that limits speed to protect the engine) on his tank and was winning, but then he heard over radio that they were coming for him and so he pulled underneath a bridge so they couldn't find him. I always assumed that this was one of Grandpas stories that he didn't let facts get in the way of.

One day while reviewing an insurance policy with an older couple, the couple told me they were from Iowa Falls. I asked if they knew my grandparents. The gentleman started laughing and said, "Are you really Leonard's grandkid? I remember the time we stole a tank and raced it....." That was one of the truly cool moments in my life reliving that story through a second set of eyes. Also, it made me question how many other stories I assumed were BS were actually true.

So long story short.... actually it's fairly long isn't it?... It's a small world and even the things you think you can hide will come back eventually. Live the life you want others to know about and you will have nothing to hide. But like Grandpa Sanders did... live some stories worth telling.