The world is a pretty big place, but certain coincidences can make it seem mighty small.
Whether you end up running into the same person at different places, or happen to see someone you went to high school with 20 years later in a completely different part of the world, sometimes Earth seems like a pretty small place.
Reddit user Palehant asked:
"What was your best 'it's a small world' moment?"
Neighbors
When a neighbor of mine when I was a kid moved from Italy to Argentina, but we both ended up in the same dorm when we arrived to University in the UK...
Military Life
Had a best friend in California 3-5th grade. I moved and lost contact.
My freshman year of high school I moved to JAPAN and he was one of the first people I ran into. Became best friends again.
GiphyMissed Connections
One of the best? My current manager knew my brother who has a different last name then me. She was talking to me about a time in high school where a guy was terrible to her, I asked who... it was my brother.
I've also met my S/O about 5 times before truly meeting her. She danced with my sister's best friend.
She was friends with my step dad's youngest brother. She went to private school with a really good friend of mine who I played soccer with.
She was friends with a girl I had a huge crush on all of middle school. I didn't truly meet her until my sophomore year.
Keeping Up With The Joneses
My daughter and I went on a weekend trip to Chicago. Our neighbors went to Chicago the same weekend.
My daughter said "Maybe we will see the Jones in Chicago." I laughed and explained that there are millions of people in Chicago.
We ran into the Jones in Chicago.
GiphyCameo
A few years ago, I went camping with a friend, her family and some family friends. Got talking to a few girls there about hobbies we had when we were younger, and discovered that me and another girl had both been majorettes when we were little.
She had some old videos on her ipod, so we decided to watch them. In one, she collected an award for coming 2nd place in a competition, but for some reason her dad had kept filming after she'd gone back to her seat.
Lowe and behold, my name gets called, and you can see a little 6 year old me wander past to collect it.
Pure fluke, 10 years later, a considerable distance away from where we both grew up.
All In The Family
I tutored Woman A in Biology for about 4-5 months in 2005.
Hooked up with Woman B about a year later in 2006.
Hooked up with Woman C about a year later in 2007.
Woman C then introduced me to her mom who turned out to be Woman A and they told me that I "might" know their aunt who turned out to be Woman B.
Small town life.
Layover
Middle Europe inhabitant. I met a girl on internet randomly from Baltic states like 3 years or so ago. We have been chatting ever since, planned some meets but never got the chance to make them work since we both are high school students.
This summer, I was travelling and my flight went from Germany to Finland (no direct flights). I was hanging out in the airport and hear a familiar voice from endless calls say my name.
Lo' and behold, the girl I chatted with for so long stood in front of me. We haven't planned to meet or anything. She traveled to Turkey and had a plane here as well. We had a great time talking and laughing at that the world is, indeed, a small place.
GiphyFrom Down Under
I traveled from Australia to the US and the first person I ran into was a guy from my work.
Us Australians are just absolutely everywhere at all times.
He just wanted to know if you got those reports done before you left.
Online
I was playing Left For Dead 2 online in my college dorm and one of the guys that I was playing against was going to the same university, staying in the same dorm, on the same floor, like 8 doors down the hall.
We poked our heads out into the hallway and said hi, then went back to our game and never spoke again. Sometimes I don't believe it actually happened.
A couple of years ago, I was playing Rust a day or two before Christmas.
Joined a random server, quite quiet, maybe 20 people online. Got speaking to some dudes. Usual stuff 'where you from? etc... Scotland, ok me too! City? No way!' Then same town... same area of the town...
Guy literally lived around the corner from me.
GiphyCzech Yourself
I was in an island in Malaysia (I’m from Indonesia). I hung out with fellow solo travelers from all over the world, Poland, Egypt, France, Algeria, Italia, US, Czech, and many more.
I talked to this girl from Czech, I told her that I have a friend in Prague and visit him every now and then.
Turned out she’s friends with my friend’s colleague, and she lives on the street next to my friend...
- hellotyo
Well Read
Bought a book called Illywacker by Peter Carey at the WHSmiths in Victoria Station in 1993, read it, sold it to a second hand bookshop in Eastbourne a few weeks later.
2003, living in Dallas, got talking to a girl on a flight who was reading a book, told her about the book, we talked on email a few times but things petered out.
Few weeks later she orders Illywacker used on Amazon, shows up, my name is written on the inside cover.
Been together ever since. And we still have the book.
- cbohno
GiphyDNA
Me and my siblings all have different dads, (our mom didn’t hide this from us and was honest about our family history, which I appreciate) and one Christmas we decided to take DNA tests.
Several months later one of my siblings found out they had a sister with an almost identical first and last name to mine. After some research, we figured out they went to the same high school, at the same time.
- sniffmynips
The Early Bird
I live in Cambodia, one Saturday arranged to meet some friends at a bar we didn't ever usually go to, I ended up getting there a lot earlier and as I walked in I banged straight into a guy who was leaving.
Was one of my old best friends from my old home town, who I'd lost touch with over a decade before. Last I knew he was in Mexico and I was living in London at that time and had come to visit Cambodia for a couple of weeks.
A surreal experience and had I not got there 15 mins before I was due to we wouldn't have crossed paths.
- bongpros
GiphyThere is a website where you can get people to house-sit for you when you are on holiday (useful if you have animals). A lovely Australian couple came and house sat for us for two weeks.
On our return we got chatting and I mentioned I had an Australian cousin. He lived on the east coast whereas they lived on the west coast.
But then it transpired they had also house-sat for my cousin two years earlier...
- flounderbout
So back in 3rd grade I met this kid that we shall call Ben. Well, Ben was born in Japan and moved to the U.S. around the time I switched schools. So, me and this kid were good friends up until about 6th grade to when he moved to Germany.
Well back in like August or July of 2019 I joined a group post on Xbox for an rp thing on Minecraft. Well me and this guy that everyone called Chance became good friends.
Then me and Chance were playing some game together when he was talking about living in the USA and moving to Germany so I asked him some questions and come to find out it was Ben.
I got reunited with my old friend from my childhood over an Xbox group post and didn't realize it was him until months later.
- Ivarthegreat95
My family and I spent our holiday in Hong Kong and my friend went on a school trip there around the same time. I joked that we might see each other there.
Then we bumped into each other. Twice. Once in a theme park and the other in the train a few days later.
Bear in mind that we didn’t know about each other’s itinerary so it was a complete coincidence on both times.
- mostlikelytocry
GiphySmall Town
While in the military, I was reassigned to a base in a different part of the country.
Not long after arriving, my wife ran into an old friend from high school, who, as it turned out, had also recently been stationed there.
They both came from a small town of only about 3,000 people.
- itsallalittleblurry
Secret Superpower
I have a superpower of sorts, to attract people I know.
Take me anywhere and there is a 90% chance we will run into someone I know. It can be anyone, from anywhere, at any time.
So I have a ton of "it's a small world" moments. People from work, from volunteer shifts I've worked, from school, anywhere.
Well, it's not a superpower to me, anyway. I consider it a blessing and a curse.
- geico_fire
It really is a small world, isn't it?
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Experiencing death is a fascinating and frightening idea.
Who doesn't want to know what is waiting for us on the other side?
But so many of us want to know and then come back and live a little longer.
It would be so great to be sure there is something else.
But the whole dying part is not that great, so we'll have to rely on other people's accounts.
Redditor AlaskaStiletto wanted to hear from everyone who has returned to life, so they asked:
"Redditors who have 'died' and come back to life, what did you see?"
Sensations
Happy Good Vibes GIF by Major League SoccerGiphy"My dad's heart stopped when he had a heart attack and he had to be brought back to life. He kept the paper copy of the heart monitor which shows he flatlined. He said he felt an overwhelming sensation of peace, like nothing he had felt before."
PeachesnPain
Recovery
"I had surgical complications in 2010 that caused a great deal of blood loss. As a result, I had extremely low blood pressure and could barely stay awake. I remember feeling like I was surrounded by loved ones who had passed. They were in a circle around me and I knew they were there to guide me onwards. I told them I was not ready to go because my kids needed me and I came back."
"My nurse later said she was afraid she’d find me dead every time she came into the room."
"It took months, and blood transfusions, but I recovered."
good_golly99
Take Me Back
"Overwhelming peace and happiness. A bright airy and floating feeling. I live a very stressful life. Imagine finding out the person you have had a crush on reveals they have the same feelings for you and then you win the lotto later that day - that was the feeling I had."
"I never feared death afterward and am relieved when I hear of people dying after suffering from an illness."
rayrayrayray
Free
The Light Minnie GIF by (G)I-DLEGiphy"I had a heart surgery with near-death experience, for me at least (well the possibility that those effects are caused by morphine is also there) I just saw black and nothing else but it was warm and I had such inner peace, its weird as I sometimes still think about it and wish this feeling of being so light and free again."
TooReDTooHigh
This is why I hate surgery.
You just never know.
Shocked
Giphy"More of a near-death experience. I was electrocuted. I felt like I was in a deep hole looking straight up in the sky. My life flashed before me. Felt sad for my family, but I had a deep sense of peace."
Admirable_Buyer6528
The SOB
"Nursing in the ICU, we’ve had people try to die on us many times during the years, some successfully. One guy stood out to me. His heart stopped. We called a code, are working on him, and suddenly he comes to. We hadn’t vented him yet, so he was able to talk, and he started screaming, 'Don’t let them take me, don’t let them take me, they are coming,' he was scared and yelling."
"Then he yelled a little more, as we tried to calm him down, he screamed, 'No, No,' and gestured towards the end of the bed, and died again. We didn’t get him back. It was seriously creepy. We called his son to tell him the news, and the son said basically, 'Good, he was an SOB.'”
1-cupcake-at-a-time
Colors
"My sister died and said it was extremely peaceful. She said it was very loud like a train station and lots of talking and she was stuck in this area that was like a curtain with lots of beautiful colors (colors that you don’t see in real life according to her) a man told her 'He was sorry, but she had to go back as it wasn’t her time.'"
Hannah_LL7
"I had a really similar experience except I was in an endless garden with flowers that were colors I had never seen before. It was quiet and peaceful and a woman in a dress looked at me, shook her head, and just said 'Not yet.' As I was coming back, it was extremely loud, like everyone in the world was trying to talk all at once. It was all very disorienting but it changed my perspective on life!"
huntokarrr
The Fog
"I was in a gray fog with a girl who looked a lot like a young version of my grandmother (who was still alive) but dressed like a pioneer in the 1800s she didn't say anything but kept pulling me towards an opening in the wall. I kept refusing to go because I was so tired."
"I finally got tired of her nagging and went and that's when I came to. I had bled out during a c-section and my heart could not beat without blood. They had to deliver the baby and sew up the bleeders. refill me with blood before they could restart my heart so, like, at least 12 minutes gone."
Fluffy-Hotel-5184
Through the Walls
"My spouse was dead for a couple of minutes one miserable night. She maintains that she saw nothing, but only heard people talking about her like through a wall. The only thing she remembers for absolute certain was begging an ER nurse that she didn't want to die."
"She's quite alive and well today."
Hot-Refrigerator6583
Well let's all be happy to be alive.
It seems to be all we have.
Trying to lose weight is a struggle understood by many people regardless of size.
The goal of reaching a healthy weight may seem unattainable, but with diet and exercise, it can pay off through persistence and discipline.
Seeing the pounds gradually drop off can also be a great motivator and incentivize people to stay the course.
Those who've achieved their respective weight goals shared their experiences when Redditor apprenti8455 asked:
"People who lost a lot of weight, what surprises you the most now?"
Redditors didn't see these coming.
Shiver Me Timbers
"I’m always cold now!"
– Telrom_1
"I had a coworker lose over 130 pounds five or six years ago. I’ve never seen him without a jacket on since."
– r7ndom
"140 lbs lost here starting just before COVID, I feel like that little old lady that's always cold, damn this top comment was on point lmao."
– mr_remy
Drawing Concern
"I lost 100 pounds over a year and a half but since I’m old(70’s) it seems few people comment on it because (I think) they think I’m wasting away from some terminal illness."
– dee-fondy
"Congrats on the weight loss! It’s honestly a real accomplishment 🙂"
"Working in oncology, I can never comment on someone’s weight loss unless I specifically know it was on purpose, regardless of their age. I think it kind of ruffles feathers at times, but like I don’t want to congratulate someone for having cancer or something. It’s a weird place to be in."
– LizardofDeath
Unleashing Insults
"I remember when I lost the first big chunk of weight (around 50 lbs) it was like it gave some people license to talk sh*t about the 'old' me. Old coworkers, friends, made a lot of not just negative, but harsh comments about what I used to look like. One person I met after the big loss saw a picture of me prior and said, 'Wow, we wouldn’t even be friends!'”
"It wasn’t extremely common, but I was a little alarmed by some of the attention. My weight has been up and down since then, but every time I gain a little it gets me a little down thinking about those things people said."
– alanamablamaspama
Not Everything Goes After Losing Weight
"The loose skin is a bit unexpected."
– KeltarCentauri
"I haven’t experienced it myself, but surgery to remove skin takes a long time to recover. Longer than bariatric surgery and usually isn’t covered by insurance unless you have both."
– KatMagic1977
"It definitely does take a long time to recover. My Dad dropped a little over 200 pounds a few years back and decided to go through with skin removal surgery to deal with the excess. His procedure was extensive, as in he had skin taken from just about every part of his body excluding his head, and he went through hell for weeks in recovery, and he was bedridden for a lot of it."
– Jaew96
These Redditors shared their pleasantly surprising experiences.
Shopping
"I can buy clothes in any store I want."
– WaySavvyD
"When I lost weight I was dying to go find cute, smaller clothes and I really struggled. As someone who had always been restricted to one or two stores that catered to plus-sized clothing, a full mall of shops with items in my size was daunting. Too many options and not enough knowledge of brands that were good vs cheap. I usually went home pretty frustrated."
– ganache98012
No More Symptoms
"Lost about 80 pounds in the past year and a half, biggest thing that I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen mentioned on here yet is my acid reflux and heartburn are basically gone. I used to be popping tums every couple hours and now they just sit in the medicine cabinet collecting dust."
– colleennicole93
Expanding Capabilities
"I'm all for not judging people by their appearance and I recognise that there are unhealthy, unachievable beauty standards, but one thing that is undeniable is that I can just do stuff now. Just stamina and flexibility alone are worth it, appearance is tertiary at best."
– Ramblonius
People Change Their Tune
"How much nicer people are to you."
"My feet weren't 'wide' they were 'fat.'"
– LiZZygsu
"Have to agree. Lost 220 lbs, people make eye contact and hold open doors and stuff"
"And on the foot thing, I also lost a full shoe size numerically and also wear regular width now 😅"
– awholedamngarden
It's gonna take some getting used to.
Bones Everywhere
"Having bones. Collarbones, wrist bones, knee bones, hip bones, ribs. I have so many bones sticking out everywhere and it’s weird as hell."
– Princess-Pancake-97
"I noticed the shadow of my ribs the other day and it threw me, there’s a whole skeleton in here."
– bekastrange
Knee Pillow
"Right?! And they’re so … pointy! Now I get why people sleep with pillows between their legs - the knee bones laying on top of each other (side sleeper here) is weird and jarring."
– snic2030
"I lost only 40 pounds within the last year or so. I’m struggling to relate to most of these comments as I feel like I just 'slimmed down' rather than dropped a ton. But wow, the pillow between the knees at night. YES! I can relate to this. I think a lot of my weight was in my thighs. I never needed to do this up until recently."
– Strongbad23
More Mobility
"I’ve lost 100 lbs since 2020. It’s a collection of little things that surprise me. For at least 10 years I couldn’t put on socks, or tie my shoes. I couldn’t bend over and pick something up. I couldn’t climb a ladder to fix something. Simple things like that I can do now that fascinate me."
"Edit: Some additional little things are sitting in a chair with arms, sitting in a booth in a restaurant, being able to shop in a normal store AND not needing to buy the biggest size there, being able to easily wipe my butt, and looking down and being able to see my penis."
– dma1965
People making significant changes, whether for mental or physical health, can surely find a newfound perspective on life.
But they can also discover different issues they never saw coming.
That being said, overcoming any challenge in life is laudable, especially if it leads to gaining confidence and ditching insecurities.