A wish for community
Last night I got to go on my previously rare, happily becoming bi-monthly, Girls' Night over at a friend's house. It's a rental house in a nearby neighborhood, but it's surrounded by tall trees, on a quiet street, with a pool in the backyard, but it's rapidly becoming my favorite place to be. As an introvert, small groups are my preference. I have a wilder side, ready to dance and laugh and feel the pulse of people around me, but the recovery time takes so much longer than it used to and that's all I seem to remember of those sorts of high energy evenings.
It's just three of us, sitting poolside, kicking our feet in the water talking, but, oh, my soul! We're developing the sort of semi-mythical female relationships that movies and books are based on, all support and love and honesty and none of the in-fighting, jealousy or sabotage. We're different in a lot ways, with different passions and paths, but the comfort I find from these women has buoyed me, reminded me that there is more to people than manipulations and their own personal needs. That I'm capable of being more than a people-pleaser and my honesty is ruefully accepted, no matter how awkward.
Right now we're in that bubble, like we have a secret that only we can enjoy. It's a bit like a new dating experience because, despite knowing both women for nearly ten years, this is the first time our lives have aligned and we've come together as a group. It's nice to know that, even at my age, I can still meet people who inspire and nourish me. That I can still form bonds that have a chance of growing for a lifetime.
Going to that space, feeling the energy there and the easy access to nature, however cultivated, brings out the woodland sprite in me. I want to keep touching the earth, admiring the trees, so I inevitably end up in my own backyard the day after, waxing poetic about the lizards and flies, keeping an eye out for birds. Wonderfully the weather has chosen to cooperate and Nora and I are parked in the back, filling up the pool and planning on a long day in the sun. (Sunblock generously applied all around, of course.)
I've heard a lot of talk about community, the joys of it, the desire for it, and while it appealed, it seemed foreign and unattainable. I haven't made connections in my neighborhood, or in the library community that Nora and I've become involved in, and the idea that moms will suddenly embrace me once Nora becomes school-aged is laughable. But this? This little slice of friendship heaven added to my already wonderful collection of women, both near and far, is icing. It's the light at the end of the tunnel.
So, in the end, I come home relaxed and rejuvenated, ready for whatever life can throw at me - trust me, it can be a lot - and I know I'm lucky. Spoiled. This morning, when I lit my incense and communed with the Universe to focus my day, I sent my wish for all people to have this in their lives. People who love them the way they deserved to be loved. Relationships that remove doubt and insecurity, build up confidence and ambition.
Be loved.
It's just three of us, sitting poolside, kicking our feet in the water talking, but, oh, my soul! We're developing the sort of semi-mythical female relationships that movies and books are based on, all support and love and honesty and none of the in-fighting, jealousy or sabotage. We're different in a lot ways, with different passions and paths, but the comfort I find from these women has buoyed me, reminded me that there is more to people than manipulations and their own personal needs. That I'm capable of being more than a people-pleaser and my honesty is ruefully accepted, no matter how awkward.
Right now we're in that bubble, like we have a secret that only we can enjoy. It's a bit like a new dating experience because, despite knowing both women for nearly ten years, this is the first time our lives have aligned and we've come together as a group. It's nice to know that, even at my age, I can still meet people who inspire and nourish me. That I can still form bonds that have a chance of growing for a lifetime.
Going to that space, feeling the energy there and the easy access to nature, however cultivated, brings out the woodland sprite in me. I want to keep touching the earth, admiring the trees, so I inevitably end up in my own backyard the day after, waxing poetic about the lizards and flies, keeping an eye out for birds. Wonderfully the weather has chosen to cooperate and Nora and I are parked in the back, filling up the pool and planning on a long day in the sun. (Sunblock generously applied all around, of course.)
I've heard a lot of talk about community, the joys of it, the desire for it, and while it appealed, it seemed foreign and unattainable. I haven't made connections in my neighborhood, or in the library community that Nora and I've become involved in, and the idea that moms will suddenly embrace me once Nora becomes school-aged is laughable. But this? This little slice of friendship heaven added to my already wonderful collection of women, both near and far, is icing. It's the light at the end of the tunnel.
So, in the end, I come home relaxed and rejuvenated, ready for whatever life can throw at me - trust me, it can be a lot - and I know I'm lucky. Spoiled. This morning, when I lit my incense and communed with the Universe to focus my day, I sent my wish for all people to have this in their lives. People who love them the way they deserved to be loved. Relationships that remove doubt and insecurity, build up confidence and ambition.
Be loved.
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