I Need More Friends
Traveling to my grandparents’ 65th wedding anniversary party was a really profound experience on so many different levels. I’ll probably write more blog posts reflecting on various aspects of the experience, but for now I want to talk about building more friendships.
For the anniversary party, my mom and aunt put together an awesome video of excerpts of my grandparents’ home movies. It’s amazing how powerful video is. I want to be sure to capture as much as I can, since this time with my young family is fleeting. For example, I want to forever be able to hear the way Tate says “Henny” instead of Henry.
Watching videos of my grandparents’ lives revealed what an amazing group of friends they had, despite the fact that they moved several times during their family’s early days. They had New Year’s Eve parties (with fancy dresses!) and vacations and camping trips with large groups of friends. Their children grew up alongside each other.
Watching the video really got me thinking about how to build that kind of support network in my life. I asked my grandparents how they did it, and they mentioned things like weekly bowling leagues and card games.
I think, for me, the trick is just going to be to start doing more. I think our family is in a rut because our weeks are so busy. Matt and I are both introverted, so we recharge by being alone. When the weekend comes, we turn inward and just build a little cocoon with our little family. I think we simply need to get in the habit of inviting people over.
So two things immediately come to mind:
- I need to get our movie nights going. Like this Saturday! I’ve been dragging my feet because I couldn’t pick a movie. Let’s just go with Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. If you are Austin-based and want to join us, just shoot me an e-mail introduction!
- It might be fun to invite other families to a casual restaurant on Friday nights at 5pm. That’s what our family is doing anyway, so it might be fun if we could get others to join us.
I’m excited!