Relationships
I’ve been thinking a lot about relationships recently. The way they ebb and flow. Those that develop and grow over time. Others that vanish as quickly as they begin. Others that age well over time like a fine wine. And even those with people you would never have thought would become best friends.
There are the ones where you only see each other once or twice over the course of a year but pick up right where you left off when you reconnect. The ones where you can’t imagine what life had been like before you met. And those that involve connecting with someone on a daily basis.
But then there are also the ones that are forced. Forced due to circumstance. Forced due to environment. The ones that take away joy rather than bring it.
All these relationships exist. They are all part of our daily lives. They all impact us in some way. For better or for worse. Get it? 😉.
In any case, I’ve been thinking about relationships lately because I’ve been thinking about the impact each and every relationship has had on my life. I’ve thought about the friends I thought would be lifelong friends that I don’t even speak to anymore and the people I never thought I’d be close to that I now call best friends. It’s funny how things change. People change. Relationships change. Life happens.
I’ve also been thinking about relationships lately because I’ve come to realize the amount of work any type of relationship takes whether it be personal or professional, friendship or romantic. Each and every single type takes work. No matter the type the effort must be there from both sides to ensure that relationship lasts over time. Otherwise the relationship will fade and die over time like a flower without water.
How do I know? Because it’s happened to me. As I look back now on certain relationships on my life I realize that they may have faded due to my lack of effort or care. Of course, the effort goes both ways but I recognize that I could have tried harder. There are certain relationships that I look back on wondering where we would be now if we both had just tried a little harder. Although I cannot say for certain this thought process comes from a place of regret, I cannot guarantee it does not in certain cases either. It all depends on what relationship we are talking about. However, what I can say now is I put the effort in each and every time.
I make the time to reach out. I make the time to have brunch, lunch, dinner, coffee, ice cream, a phone call, whatever, in order to provide the TLC that relationships need. I don’t hold grudges and I leave doors open; because I wonder, at the end of the day without those relationships what else will I be left with? And life, life is fleeting.
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