Who Do You Know?

(Image Copyright Sharon Lam)
When do we ever tell “the whole truth” to any one person? Bits of our past, our hopes and dreams, are scattered about, confided piecemeal to our friends, co-workers, therapists, even strangers. When can we ever truly say, “I really know him.”?

Last night, sharing our mutual feelings of longing for our son, I discovered something new, something big, about the time my husband came to the U.S. His original plan was to accompany his sister across the border, see her off on her journey to Florida, and then go back home. 23 years later, he’s still here.

How could I have missed this? How did this tiny little detail that is so absolutely crucial to our life and present circumstances never have come up in conversation before?

Isn’t Cheo’s present longing for a best friend actually a longing for someone to know him, to share his hopes with, to see the whole of him, and not just that face he presents to the casual world? I absolutely understand that longing.