As we near the end of June we have been reflecting on what the theme of connection has meant to us this month. We didn't just write about it. That was our life.
The last few weeks have found us traveling through Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania. We also took time to catch up with friends and family we hadn’t seen in a while along the way.
Some visits took a couple of hours. Others were merely a meal, or a cup of coffee. None of them had to be complicated. All that mattered was being together.
After every visit something interesting happened. Almost always one of us would say as we drove away, "I'm so glad we did that."
We were left with a feeling long after the conversation ended. We laughed. We exchanged memories. We caught up on our lives. For a moment the miles and the months between us disappeared.
A reminder that connection does not always have to be for a special occasion. Sometimes it's simply a matter of trying.
As we’ve gotten older we’ve discovered that time feels different. We don’t know how many times we will get to sit around a kitchen table, to hug someone goodbye, to hear one more story that we have never heard before.
That realization has led us to reintroduce something we used to do years ago.
We are going to start sending greeting cards again.
Not because it’s someone’s birthday or a holiday is coming. Why not?
A simple card in the mailbox saying, ‘we were thinking of you,’ or ‘we love you,’ can change the whole day for someone. It's amazing how personal a handwritten note in the mailbox feels in the world of text messages and social media notifications.
It’s a small thing but it’s often the small things that people remember the most.
Connection doesn’t always come through grand gestures. It's created by repeatedly being reminded that you matter.
As this month comes to an end, we hope you’ll think of someone you’ve been pondering lately. Could be an old friend. A brother. A cousin. An Ex Co worker. Someone you haven't spoken to in a long time.
Give them a ring. Meet them for lunch or maybe surprise them with a handwritten card.
You never know how much that small gesture might mean to them.
Or to you.
Because if there's one thing we've learned from June, it's this:
The best part of connection is not only to make someone else feel loved.
It’s realizing how much our own hearts needed it too.
Is there someone you've been meaning to reconnect with? We'd love to hear who came to mind as you were reading. Share with us in the comments.
If you missed this month's earlier posts on connection, be sure to explore them as we continue our journey of thriving after 50 together.
Keep thriving!
Kirsten & Mack
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