Part of my job involves creating the electronic version of our firm's thought leadership pieces, querying our CRM system for the appropriate recipients, distributing the bulk email and finally managing the bouncebacks.
Most times said bouncebacks are very mundane in nature. So-and-so is out of the office today. If you need immediate assistance, contact this person. Or, effective x date, so-and-so is no longer employed at XYZ Corp. But ever once in a while, I get to peer into something much more lively.
Today I saw an out-of-office greeting for an individual who was taking a biking vacation in Vietnam and Cambodia. In addition to the dates of her absence and instructions on how to get assistance while she was away, she also provided a link to a blog that promised to tell of her travels. Intrigued, I made a note of it to explore further when I got home. I'm a sucker for blogs.
Much to my delight, the blog indeed told the story of her trip in well-written detail and featured some beautiful photography. I was captivated so I read on.
In earlier posts, she shared a compelling facet of her life. It seems that on her deathbed, her mother revealed to this woman (Emily) that she (Emily) had a half-sister from her father's previous marriage. Emily spent her entire life (I don't know for sure, but from the pictures, she appears to be in her 50's) not knowing this important detail about her past.
Life continued on and this shocking revelation took a back burner until several years later when the mysterious half-sister contacted her by letter. By now, Emily's dad was dead and the half-sister was researching her family tree and-- through the dad's obituary-- discovered Emily. They corresponded and eventually met, all of which was documented in the blog.
Wow. It's funny and amazing how cyberspace and serendipity led me to a true story that was much more interesting than a lot of the fiction I read. I intend on checking her blog frequently. Just to see how it all turns out.
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