Call to Care

It's amazing to me how rejuvenating a chat with a good friend can be. Even if it's someone I haven't talked to in a while, if the bond is strong enough, it doesn't matter. Speaking to each other is easy and familiar, and I just hate that I don't do it often enough. Today I had one of those chats.

Being far away from my hometown has made me complacent in keeping up with friends. Facebook makes it even worse. I can keep up without having to put anymore effort than typing my password and scrolling through other people's posts. But nothing replaces that connection of one person with another, whether it's a phone call or a letter or even a quick email.

In a few weeks, we'll be in Rochester to visit. That Saturday, some friends are gathering at my mom's house to see the little girl pictured above (who rocks those leg warmers like no one's business and successfully crawled across the floor today -- um, wow!), and I'm totally stoked to see a few of them. One in particular, I haven't barely kept up with at all, and I'm making it my mission to rectify that.

After reading Real Love for Real Life, I've felt compelled to get out of my comfort zone and work at relationships with the people around me, as well as those who are far away. The call to care for each other, nurture relationships, and be creative in letting others know they're loved is so important. Right now I think it's what I'm called to do.

And not just because of what it will do for them, but invariably what it will do for me.