Earlier this month, I went on a trip with three of my college roommates that was timely and well-needed… at least for me, but probably all of us. Getting together for reunions, dinners, or even grabbing a cup of coffee to swap books has been a nice way to stay connected for us. But getting to go away and spend two days together under one roof in a remote house along the rocky shores of Maine with no children or spouses provided us with some real quality connection time.
To be honest, I wasn’t sure we would actually follow through on our plans given the back and forth to land on a weekend that would work for all, followed by the crickets of our busy lives taken hold of our schedules. But finally, the ice-breaking text of, “are we still on for our girl’s weekend?” followed by a resounding yes from all and some quick planning, we were ready to go!
The weekend was everything I thought it would be and so much more. It was our time to press pause for reconnecting, rekindling, reflection (sprinkled with tears), loads of laughter and of course, the reminiscing (which was more of a game of fill-in-the-blanks). Being together under the same roof provided us with time; to share, to listen, and especially, to learn that while we are leading very separate lives, we share so many commonalities that further supported our bonding time and our collective agreement of making this an annual trip.
Circles of connection, the human engagement, whether it be with your family, friends, colleagues, classmates, teammates, or neighbors, is the foundation of support throughout your life. Having it restricted by the pandemic, made me more aware of how precious and necessary my connections are to me. I am truly grateful for my friendships, for the opportunities afforded to me over the years to connect with people, to create new friendships and rekindle old.
A couple of my favorite books about connections and what’s most important (WMI) are:
Together, by Vivek H. Murphy, MD,
Be Where Your Feet Are, by Scott M. O’Neil
In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The only way to have a friend is to be one.”