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Have you ever looked back on a moment in your life and thought, THAT was meant to happen?
We spend so much time trying to control outcomes. We map out timelines. We set expectations. We decide how things should unfold. But what if some of the most important moments in our lives are the ones we never could have orchestrated?
Think about the people you’ve met by chance. The conversations that shifted your perspective. The risks you took on a whim. The moments when something in your gut said, “Go.” Those turning points rarely arrive with flashing signs. They show up disguised as ordinary days.
Sometimes the most unexpected conversations turn into the most memorable stories.
As a child, did you read the book Flat Stanley?
Like so many kids, I remember the bright, simple illustrations and the magic of a boy flattened by a bulletin board who somehow turned that mishap into adventure. The idea that he could be mailed in an envelope and travel the world felt wildly creative and oddly believable at the same time. It was one of those stories that didn’t just sit on a shelf — it moved. Literally.
Last fall while planning a solo trip to Europe, I wanted to bring a little piece of my husband with me. I thought about the elementary school project given to students where they would bring Flat Stanley with them on vacation. Taking pictures of his adventures.
So, I found a company on Amazon making little figures using a photo you send to them.
Perfect!
I sent in a photo of my husband and received my Pocket Hubby, as I called him.
During my trip I would take photos of Pocket Hubby in different places, enjoying food and visiting landmarks along my trip just like the Flat Stanley project.
Towards the end of my trip I was in Strasbourg, France. Hotels are very expensive at that time of year because of the Christmas markets. So instead, I rented a room in a woman’s home through Airbnb. Corinne was an amazing host. If you visit Strasbourg, France be sure to stay with her. She’s amazing!
FIND YOUR PERFECT ACCOMODATION
One morning, Corinne asked me what my plans for the day were. As we were discussing things to do in the city, she mentioned that there was a museum dedicated to her uncle Tomi Ungerer. Having never heard of him, I googled him.
That’s when it happened!
I wasn’t at a book signing. I wasn’t at a literary conference. I wasn’t even doing anything remotely related to children’s books. And yet, somehow, I found myself in a conversation with the niece of the illustrator of the original Flat Stanley.
Yes — that Flat Stanley.
There was no grand announcement. No dramatic reveal. In fact, Corinne had never heard of the Flat Stanley because the book was never published in Europe, only in the United States.
This chance encounter reminded me how intertwined our stories really are.
Often, we don’t realize just how close we are to the people who shaped the things we love. A book you read as a child. A song you loved in high school. A product you use every day. Behind all of it are real people — families, memories, dinner table conversations, sketches on scrap paper that turned into something iconic.
And maybe that’s the magic.
You never know when a casual conversation will reconnect you with a piece of your childhood. You never know whose story is standing right next to you in line or sitting across from you at a table.
Tomi Ungerer, the illustrator, probably never imagined just how far those drawings would go — how many teachers would use them as learning tools, how many children would imagine themselves traveling because of one simple concept. A flattened paper boy became a global classroom tradition. It was a quiet reminder that creativity lasts longer than we think. That the work we put into the world can travel far beyond our own reach. That even something simple — a drawing of a flat little boy — can leave a mark for decades. That is the power of creativity.
Sometimes life folds in on itself in the sweetest ways.
Just like an envelope carrying Flat Stanley or me carrying Pocket Hubby across the world, stories travel.
And every once in a while, they find their way back to you.
