Meeting a 64 year old version of myself was mind boggling. Meeting her two daughters was amazing. Meeting her grandson was almost too much.
Old Emma’s 4 year old granddaughter, Nicole, was fascinated by young Emma, crawling into her lap, looking back and forth between the two Emmas. Eventually, she went back to her mother, Danielle, and whispered.
“They are the same!”
Sunday afternoon soccer matches called them away, then the eight of us had lunch at Old Hannah’s house. (Just saying that makes my brain hurt.)
Once we were all settled, old Kent said, “I think we should talk about Traveling Friends matters today and try to take the boat out tomorrow… Whatta you think?”
The other old versions of us nodded, and then old Emma started explaining.
“When I realized I was going to stay in 1984 I figured I could do a lot of good with my knowledge of the future. I already had encountered the Pay It Forward and The Random Acts Institution, so I guess that got me thinking. Right after we got to the Appalachians, I started telling the others, who… you know… were from the 1800s…”
Merritt spoke up. “Needless to say, we couldn’t believe it.”
Hannah then added. “Emma knew about modern ideas, and we decided we’d go in it together, once we saved up some money.”
Old Emma went on. “Well, that fall in 1984, when we started sharing memories, everyone caught on fast. By the time we broke camp for Christmas and headed back to a nearby little town, it was clear we could make investments that would pay back big.”
Kent nodded. “Techs… Apple… Microsoft… Google… Lots of them.”
Emma went on. “By 89, we were on our way, so we set up Traveling Friends. And also the Traveling Friends Foundation.”
Kent smiled. “Our take on Pay It Forward… It’s a charity that gives out grants… We have a trustee that keeps a board and legal stuff. We just put money in.”
Merritt nodded. “10% of income over expenses each quarter.”
“Now, get to the important part,” Kent said pointing at Emma.
Old Emma smiled and nodded her head.
Old Hannah looked at her husband. “Always moving fast!”
Emma laughed. “Okay, we made a lot of money. We knew 2024 would come around and… it’s a little paradoxical about the memories… but by the end of 1985 we figured out if we lived, we’d catch up to when you started sending the memories back to us. So, when we set up Traveling Friends it was with you… us… Well, we planned you’d be part of it… I mean… it’s impossible for us to not think of you as part of it! We’re the same…”
Then Emma remembered how we’d talked about it like computers and said, “Instances of the same person.”
Old Emma—the one born in 2005—nodded. “Exactly.”
Then young Kent shook his head. “So… you want us in the LLC?”
Old Merritt nodded. “We set it up with this day in mind. We figured we come looking for you in the spring, but here you are… Back in 1984, around the holidays when the memories started coming in… your memories of the future… that’s what made all this possible…”
Young Emma then said, “What about your kids?”
Merritt smiled. “They understand, believe it or not. When Melissa hit 21 in 2013, we split everything into 8 parts. Each child got ⅛ and our ⅛s went back into Traveling Friends. The kids are set for life, plus they have great jobs on top of that.”
“So, this is for real?” Kent asked.
Old Kent smiled. “As real as that 45 foot Cabo down at the marina that I’m dying to show you!”
Old Hannah shook her head. “Tomorrow, husband. Tomorrow”
“Then,” Merritt added, “after you’ve had time to think about it all, we can meet the lawyers on Tuesday and add you to the LLC.”
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