IN SEARCH OF THE NEW FORMER STRANGER

The tale was told that once, about half a century ago, when I was being wheeled through an airport, that someone in my family said something to me about strangers, and I, it is said, replied that "strangers are just friends we haven't met." Certainly, this is just more evidence that to see the child is to see the man, for I have to concede that this is an approach to people which has endured, without my giving it much thought, to the present day.
But I was thinking of it today, this attitude of mine, while packing for a trip the purpose of which is to seek out a stranger and turn him, or her, into a friend. I'll be heading deep into unfamiliar territory, a strange landscape in a distant place, and I'll be looking with my oldest and my youngest sons for a stranger, the right stranger, to turn into a friend, one that I would hope to begin an enduring personal and business relationship.
Some people, I understand, doing exactly what I am doing, would be looking for something else entirely. They might be looking for sources, for suppliers, for commodities. But while it would look to the outsider as though we wanted the same thing, nothing could be farther from the truth. To some, the oft quoted saying, "It's not personal, it's just business," makes perfect sense. They nod, as though this were the bedrock foundation of the universe, as though there could be no other foundation. But though I understand the words, they don't really make sense in that order. To me, the quote should be, "It's not business, it's just personal." One does not have a relationship with tea or steel or cloth, but with the people who make and buy and sell those things. And while the things have their uses, to make money or to reach some other goal, they are just things. But people and relationships with people, those are the important things.
My grandfather's business partner and he began a company with nothing more than a handshake and built it into a business that lasted more than 30 years, dissolving only when advanced age made it necessary-- for business purposes. But the partnership itself survived until the men were gone.
And I think that somehow, the lesson I learned without it being taught, was that even though this was how my grandfather earned his living, that the more important thing, the thing of true value, was the friendship, the partnership, between the two men. Perhaps they teach this in business school, while students are busy working towards an MBA, that personal relationships, and not money, are the most important thing. But if so, it's a lesson I learned at no cost and without being told at a very young age. And if not, if this is not taught in business school, then perhaps an MBA is not really worth the cost.
No matter. I'm off to find someone I don't know. It should be a lot of fun.