Have You Seen Her?

I'm fortunate to have restablished a tie with a person I met years ago in my formative cross dressing years.
As I look back on the experiences with him and the others in the small group of individuals we used to "hang out" with "back in the day", it is truly amazing the diversity in the small numbers.
I would say this little social group numbered at the most 8 or ten people. Included were two who went on to complete the change, so we numbered a couple true transsexuals.  Another two or three would probably be called transgender today. Of course there were a couple cross dressers, a couple spouses and even an admirer thrown in.
Looking back the 30 plus years or so and I compare the learning experience with going to a diverse public school instead of a private school with all the same kids.
At any rate, as I have started to share some of my recent experiences with him, his most basic comment is Wow, what happened to the person I (him) used to know?
Of course I don't hold the comment against him, but that person so many years ago is gone. Our paths went separate directions and he stayed firmly in the closet (his choice-it's all good) and of course you see where I have ended up. (No cheap shots!)
He now is wondering (and asked) when I am embarking down the final path to SRS.
Well, I'm not I told him. I explained I am very comfortable where I am in life right now and more importantly the people I love and love me are comfortable with me too.
I guess that very thought pattern was foreign to him and maybe more sustainable in  today's society than in the past?
With all the information available these days, it's almost as if we are going through a knowledge bonanza that us (older) trans folks haven't seen since the internet started to boom.
All of the sudden I'm finding others like me and life choices I didn't know existed. Sort of like when I was so alone as a youth thinking I was the only one in the world who thought about gender like I did.
It has been a special experience contacting with him though! The whole process has given me yet another chance to step back in time and evaluate where I have come from. In the end, it's the best way to predict the future!