Today I attended a meetup of some people from the town where
I grew up. Other than some Facebook
contact these people were all strangers to me.
Yes, I did know a few of the last names, but for all intents and
purposes I had never actually met any of them before in person.
I had made a point of reminding some other former Des
Plaines residents of this meeting – people I do know in person from my
youth. These folks replied to me that
they did not initially want to attend today’s meeting because they thought that
“no one I know will be there.”
This is a type of thinking that I do not understand. We all grew up, or spent a portion of our
formative years, in the same town. Our
home town. So many years have gone by,
and personally, I want to meet and talk
with anyone from my home town, anyone at all.
There were folks from age 44 to age 84 at the meetup. It sure would have been nice if more people
had attended.
Why would you be afraid to meet someone new, who happened to
be from your home town? Not only that,
but how delightful to meet someone of an older age who knows so much of the
history of the area!
As I have gotten older I have it more and more delightful to
meet and chat with people who were previously strangers to me. What a wonderful wealth of ideas, beliefs,
likes, and dislikes. The variety of each
of us being unique and the thrill of discovering that there are so many people
in the world who like the same things, believe in the same things! And to learn
of all the new and different possibilities in this magical life we have the
privilege to experience.
Do not be afraid to talk to strangers in a group situation!
Especially if you have something in common, like your home town!
Expand your horizons, widen the friend base, the way the
world is now days is it not better to have a wider circle of friends?
This is the adventure of life!
