March 26,2020 – They say everyone has a doppelganger. Somewhere out there, there’s an almost perfect duplicate of you. According to information I found online, “a doppelganger is a mysterious exact double of a living person. It’s a German word that literally translates to ‘ double walker. ‘ A doppelganger isn’t someone when just resembles you, but is an exact double, right down to the way you walk, talk and dress.”
About twenty years ago I was working in a manufacturing facility. I worked in production on the overnight shift. The hours worked for me because my two sons were still not old enough to be left by themselves during the day when not in school. I worked there for five years, and let’s just say it was an eye opening experience. During those years, some of the other employees would mistake me for another woman who worked days in the office there. When I would inform them that I wasn’t her, they would tell me I could be her twin. Eventually I did see this woman, and she definitely wasn’t my doppelganger or spitting image. If we stood side by side, you could definitely tell we were different people. Yet I have to confess that some of our facial features were very similar. I honestly could understand how people could mistake me for her.
Along this train of thought, I have had many loved ones die in my lifetime, but the ones I miss the most are my son, Mom and Dad. And there are living people out there that sometimes remind me of them. There will also be people out that that remind you of your loved ones who have passed.
My Dad was the first to pass in 1985. Afterwards, I would sometimes meet or see men that would remind me of him. When this happened, needless to say, the experience would sadden me, rather than cheer me up.
My Mom passed away in 1992. As with my Dad, I sometimes would see or meet a woman who would remind me of her. I remember one encounter in particular, when my husband and I were waiting to be seated at a restaurant. There was a woman in front of us who reminded me of my Mom so much, that my eyes filled up with tears. Upon noticing my reaction, my husband quietly said, ” she reminds you of your Mom.” So he too saw the resemblance. Again, this experience saddened me!
After my son died in 2000, I remember reading about this subject in a book someone had given me. But that author looked at these experiences totally different from how I had come to react. I remember that person writing something to the effect, that when you see someone who reminds you of a loved one who has passed, rather than be sad, cherish the moment! It is a gift!
From that moment on, that is what I have tried to do. In addition to still running into people who remind me of my Mom and Dad, I often encounter young men ( my son was twenty when he passed ), who remind me of my son.
One time recently in particular, as I drove the Main St home and was close to where we had lived when my son was alive, I noticed a young man walking on the same sidewalks my son had walked on many times. It may have been his build, or his attire which included a baseball cap or his gait. But I looked at him in my rearview mirror until I could no longer see him. That’s how much he reminded me of my son. Although a bit sad, it filled my heart with joy at that moment.
Leonardo Dicaprio reminds me of my son. I love him as an actor because he is amazing, but I think I also do because of his resemblance to my son. They have very similar facial features, similar hair lines and similar builds. But even some of Leonardo’s facial expressions, including his smile, are similar to my son’s. I thought it was just me, but one day as we were discussing one of Leonardo’s movies, my cousin told he that he also reminded her of my son.
So now I cherish these encounters. It is like, for at least a moment in time, my son or Mom or Dad are with me, if only in spirit. So when you are fortunate enough to see someone who reminds you of your child or another loved one who has passed, smile, look up to heaven, and say thank you.
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