The world size reveals itself again

And it is small.

In some ways I love it, in other ways I don't.

Let me preface what I found out this morning with some similiar small world stories.

I am in London, summer 2001, in front of the Tower of London. We had just been given a tour and we were outside awaiting instructions. I am about to snap yet another picture of the view when this woman and her daughter walk in front of my camera. In the very American, Texan, and Gold way I yank down my camera from my face and am about to launch into them...when I realize I know them. They live down the street from where my parents live. No big deal, right? Yes, it is. Because one must understand what street my parents live down. They live in Wimberley, Texas, a small charming Hill Country town, and they live down a dirt road outside of town where only a dozen other people live, almost half of them my family members. So, to see my parent's neighbors in London, halfway across the globe...yes, that is a big deal. What great fun that was discovering them. Not only did I see them, however, I also ran into two other families also from Wimberley. Creepy.

Then a couple of months later I am working at a restaurant with another young woman who went to Girls State and it turns out that we were in the same "city". That was fun too.

Now, another one has happened. I think this might be my most favorite small world discovery of all.

My spanish teacher is very cool. She is petite, feisty, and energetic and with, I noticed, an Italian last name. For those of you who don't know me, I love the Italian language. I studied for three semesters at UT and am very sad that I don't remember it very well (if at all, in some cases).
So, I asked my Spanish teacher today if she did speak Italian (sometimes she speaks spanish with an italian accent, I noticed).
"Yes, I do. Do you know Italian"
"Well, I used to. I studied it for three semesters at UT."
"Really? With whom?"
"With Esmerelda Moscatelli and Carlos Capra."
"And what did you think of them"
"I liked both of them. They were very different from each other; Esmerelda was crazy and ran around a bunch and Capra was quiet with a very slight dry sense of humor but I really loved his class."
"Oh good...he is my husband!"
After some laughter, she says she totally set me up for it. It was a good thing I liked him so much, too!
But I love it! I love instances such as these. I completely miss Italian. When I took her husband's class, the era of my depression was just beginning and I failed all my classes by not going to them, except for his class, which should say a lot, I told my Spanish teacher.

Anyways, I was grinning all the way from Spanish to the computer lab, that I had to blog about it. She says he remembers everybody, especially ones that should have made an A (which was definitely me) and I bet he will remember me and tell her what a good student I was and maybe I can re-learn some of Italian again by speaking to her. Oh the joy of languages! If I had superpowers, that would be one of them; the ability to speak any language. Too bad I am such a visual learner and it takes me so long to understand the audio part of a language. Grrr...something I shall overcome.

Ciao ragazzi, ci vediamo!
Michelle