Describe a random encounter with a stranger that stuck out positively to you.

A few months back my Dad decided to tag along with my sister to one of the game stores in town where she could pick up some Lorcana cards. During that trip is when my Dad learned about a tabletop game you might have heard of called Necromunda (part of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.) He watched a couple of guys at the store playing and was instantly drawn in.

Now, that encounter was solely for my Dad as I obviously was not there, but it is the precursor to the events of this past Saturday.

My Dad was welcomed in and the guys explaining the rules along with everything he needed to play. Then the store owner helped him pick out the things he needed to play but he didn’t buy anything on that particular trip. He waited until the next time, when he could ask me to come with, to buy the things he needed. You see, one of the most important things about any of the Warhammer kits you buy is that they aren’t pre-assembled and painted. My Dad knew that I had been dabbling in painting miniatures, and that if he asked I would handle all of that for him. Which I did end up doing.

I had never worked on any Warhammer stuff before, so it was a new experience for me. My Dad wanted me to bring my painting stuff to his house so he could spend time chatting with me while watching me work. I only ever came over on the weekends for a couple hours or so at a time, so it took a while to get things done. (In retrospect, I now know a few things I could have done differently to expedite the process.) It took a few months to get done because there were multiple weekends where we didn’t get together for our usual family gatherings. Sick kids, sick parents, bad timing all around for various reasons.

Anyways, I got all ten of the little guys assembled and painted, and my Dad brought them to the Warhammer store here in town (rather than the original game store we went to) so he could talk to some guys there about playing.

If you’re still with me, this is where MY encounter with a stranger was positive.

My Dad asked me to meet him at the store, so I obliged and headed over. When I got there the store owner was walking my Dad through how to play, and a couple of other guys were assembling and painting their own minis. The topic of painting came up, obviously, when my Dad mentioned I had painted his for him, and we all got to talking and sharing. The guys showed me what they were working on as well as a finished piece (some really cool mech thing with long skinny legs and a rail gun or something hanging from underneath) and I shared some of the things I had painted for Black Rose Wars and the Totally-Not-Atraxa that I had printed and painted.

We had a good conversation all around, and seeing other people work on (and struggle with) painting minis really helped me realize that, even with imperfections in my painting techniques, they were more or less like me in that area. That even if I keep to myself most of the time with this hobby, I am not alone, and not everyone will be as good as the people I see on Instagram.