Woman's letter after leaving Australia 70 years ago leads to 'incredible' visit
The couple who now live in the Sydney flat were 'so grateful' the woman reached out.
A woman's hopeful letter to the owners of her childhood home has led to an "incredible experience" for everyone involved.
Addressing the couple who have lived in the same flat in Sydney's eastern suburbs for the past 17 years, Meg asked if she could revisit the home she had fond memories of as a young girl.
"I used to live in your flat 70 years ago before I came to England with my parents," she said in the letter shared on Reddit.
"I have some memories of the place mainly looking out the window of what my mother called the sun room to the harbour, and the small pier next door."
The male resident, Benjamin Richards, confirmed to Yahoo News Australia earlier this month the meeting with Meg and her husband Jed in Double Bay was due to go ahead on Friday March 17, admitting "the post did seem to gather a lot of attention".
'It was a different time' in Double Bay
Reflecting on the heartwarming gathering in an updated post, he said he and his wife Pamela were "grateful Meg reached out and asked to visit".
"We spent (a) few hours sitting outside enjoying the afternoon breeze and the view, drinking tea, and catching up with stories from the 1950s," Mr Richards said in the comments.
"The neighbourhood was certainly a lot more undeveloped in 1950s, kids would catch leather-jackets (fish) from their boats then row over to Clark Island (about 1000 metres away) to fry them up. It was a different time."
Walking through the apartment, the woman fondly remarked on how some things had changed, while others stayed the same.
"The apartment looks out over the water," Mr Richards said. "There was still the wharf next door, the rocks and a small beach to the east that she would walk upon. She still had a few scars from her more adventurous days."
They made their way to Meg's old bedroom, which is now the couple's spare room.
"Meg showed where her bed was – under the window. She told me about how she’d look out the window overlooking where the boats were stored," the man said. "Now, there’s another apartment building, which was built in 1959 (after Meg had left)".
Post triggers conversations about the past
Besides being "clearly moved" by the experience, Meg was also "blown away" by the response online, according to the resident.
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"We had 9.8 million people look at the letter... and over 110,000+ upvote the post," Mr Richards said in the comments.
"I was really pleased that it started a conversation about revisiting places you lived in the past."
"Meg was most amused that there was a theme in the comments that maybe there was something hidden in the walls. Alas no … no money, no gold .. no bitcoin."
Many thanked the man for sharing the rare experience.
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