The Not-So-Small World

Since we came to London, I've marveled at all the technology that keeps us connected to home. I can use my computer's built-in camera to see my dog eat a jelly bean. The same technology allows me to have a chat with my boss, just as if I were sitting at his desk.
I can use email to communicate with friends and family all over the USA. I can even "chat" in real time to friends, and using a microphone and Skype to make calls on my computer costs me just 2 cents per minute.
So staying in touch is easy. It's a small world, after all.
The world got a whole lot bigger for me over the weekend. As we were leaving Budapest, I checked email and a few news sites, including my hometown newspaper, the Winston-Salem Journal. It's a daily ritual for me to check the Journal's obituaries.
As I pulled up the site, a name popped off the page at me. Dr. Carl Michael Beavers. The husband of my oldest and dearest friend was dead.
He hadn't been sick, I knew, but that's all I knew But I only knew what was in that short notice and I wanted to know more, but I was six hours ahead of Winston-Salem time and it was too early to call anyone - except my mother. She was shocked too.
As soon as we got back to London, I called Leigh. Carl suffered a heart attack and died very late Thursday night. He'd had a heart workup a month ago and everything was fine. This was a total shock.
I've known Carl for more than 30 years, since he was a young medical student. Over the years I seen him become a loved and respected family physician, a father of four, and earlier this year, a proud first-time grandfather.
For the past few days, the Atlantic has become wider and wider. I wanted to be there to hug my friend and help her through these horrible days. I wanted to comfort the children. I wanted to attend the funeral and see him laid to rest in God's Acre in Old Salem, where my own father and grandparents are buried.
All that wonderful technology seems useless today and I feel so far away. The connections I'm relying on right now are the ones in my heart and soul, not broadbands and webcams.
The world is not so small after all.