I’ll be the first one to admit I can be a bit antisocial when I meet new people, although I have been working on trying to be more outgoing. That being said, I don’t usually go beyond tolerance if I know I’ll be moving on in the near future and if there’s a good chance I’ll probably never see those people again. I think everyone has met people they can’t stand, kudos to you if you find the good in everyone, and people that they just get along with, but nothing more.
However, every now and then you come across people who you want to stay in contact with beyond the short time period you’ve begun to get to know them. Sometimes you find people that have so much in common with you, from music preferences to your usual order at Panda Express, that it’s kind of freaky but in a good way. Sometimes something just clicks and you find the time and space to let someone new into your circle and, after a while, you’re glad you did.
But just like everything else, there are usually two sides. The good and the bad if you will. Maybe appreciation and disappointment are somewhat better words. Have you ever experienced a moment when a complete stranger says or does something that really changes you or offers a simple, friendly gesture that turns your whole day around? Something that makes you arrive, sometimes quite suddenly, at some sort of realization that teaches you about yourself or life in general. Then, in a blink of an eye they’re gone. You probably didn’t get a chance to say goodbye or even thank them. The only trace they left behind is the impact they made on you. An abstract idea. A memory.
“You don’t know who is important to you until you actually lose them.”
― Mahatma Gandhi
People will come and go throughout our entire lives. Sometimes we control this, but most of the time we don’t. That’s the way things are. Appreciate those you have right now before it’s too late and never forget the ones you have made a difference in your life.
Electric Echo 