Self Exposure

Tonight I went to a birthday party. I had a long tiring ugh day and I didn't really want to go, but I figured my appearance would be meaningful to my friend. And... I'm glad I went. I didn't know many/any of his friends who were there, so I walked into a crowd of relative strangers. For some reason that was okay. Some of us had common interests, and conversations were easy. There was one guy in particular, Nick. He's nineteen, has a mullet, and told us stories about fleeing from the police in China. Then he and I got into a conversation that led us to the couch, then to me offering him a ride home. There we sat in his driveway for two hours, and I got home at 3:30. It was a conversation of utter honesty and exposure. We told each other everything and felt like we could ask anything. We talked about God and sin and sex and depression and work and parenting and more. A few times he said, "Almost no one else knows this, but I feel really comfortable telling you..." I shared some secrets that I generally hesitate to talk about. We're strangers, and there's safety in that - no preconceived notion of who the other person is, no obligation to remain in each other's lives. As he went to leave my car he reached out to shake my hand, and then we sat there like that for a while longer. We might keep in touch, getting contact info through our mutual friend. I wonder what that would be like, and if we can take the openness we shared this night and turn it into a friendship.