Apart from loving this word – it rolls off the tongue so well – it aprtly describes what happened to me a couple of days ago.
I was recently on the KGS Go server – an Internet service for playing and watching the games of Go – the Oriental board game. I reported antisocial behaviour of one player to an administrator. The matter was resolved and I ended up chatting via the keyboard to the Admin man.
I happened to mention that I’ve been writing a book teaching the Oriental game of Go for the last 3 months.
He may have been the best man in the World to do so – hence the serendipitious aspect to this chat :
- He himself has been teaching Go for a year or so
- He has worked commercially as a book proof reader
- His wife is a professional Go player
- He offered for a free review of my book by himself and his wife
I necessarily took up his offer. His feedback was intense, and was a shock, exposing severe shortcomings in my understanding of Go (even after 18 years of playing), it was exactly what my book needed.
Today, I was introduced by a friend to a Historian called Melvyn, on the grounds of potential common interest. My friend knew I was looking to publish a book of photographs of a district of Cardiff.
We had a good chat, and I tentatively agreed to attend his presentation later this week.
After lunch, I walked to the lake here in Cardiff, and had a cuppa in the coffee shop. The only vacant seat in the sun was opposite a gentleman. I asked if I could sit down, and then realised it was Melvyn. We had a great chat and I now have a new friend.
