I don't remember the slightest feeling of surprise. The situation didn't seem strange to me at all. I didn't want to stare, or run, or even wonder. . . It was absolutely clear, as clear as reality becomes when you waken from a dream, that I had been waiting all my life to be with this person again. What amazed me more than the physical presence in the room was the love that came with it. I felt as though I were caught in a glowing tidal wave of love, a love so strong that all the pain on earth couldn't even begin to put a dent in it. I have sometimes wondered why I didn't feel cheated at having spent so many terrible days on earth before I found that love again. But once I was back within it, all the frustration and loneliness I had ever suffered seemed completely inconsequential.
Martha Beck (in Expecting Adam)