Yesterday evening descended upon us in a golden haze tinged with the reds and ambers that only Florida can boast.
That it was mid-seventies accompanied by the most gentle of breezes, only served to make the evening more special.
We picked up a couple of beers on the way to the lake’s edge and as Brittany played with her hoola hoop behind me, I crawled belly down on the ground trying to get shots to record how special the evening was.
I hope you like this little collection that shows the progression from the moment the sun fell below the horizon until the night crescendoed above us. I know, I know … I am still making up words. Crescendo was never meant to be a verb.
After I got home and began to reflect on the evening, I had a familiar thought that I have already shared. And that is the importance of having someone special to share a moment with.
Our life is full of moments, good and bad, and while their intensity varies, they are almost always better when shared with a true friend.
Bad moments seem not so bad and good moments seem magnificent.
Which really only works to bear out the social aspects of being human.
But when the ooohs and aaahs in appreciation of a moment like last night, are not just coming from your own mouth, then the importance of a simpatico friend takes a front seat. Particularly when they share your own fervor for the situation.
Sometimes when your friend shares such a moment with you, they do so in an arm’s length manner. They are not wildly interested in the moment themselves but they are there for you.
But the true win is experienced when they have every bit as much an interest in the experience as you do. It becomes very much a case of the sum of two parts being greater than the individual parts.
So, when we seek out people to share our lives with, it is important to have at least some within our closest circle that share our passions. People who feel as we do, and whose thoughts run parallel to our own.
Oftentimes, our circle of friends is defined by the life we live. The social circle we move in, or the work people that we befriend along the way.
Sometimes these circles produce a friend that shares your passion, but not necessarily. People can be wonderful friends without sharing your interests on your level. But they can never produce a shared moment like a “passionate” friend can.
A shared passion will motivate and reward on a level otherwise not experienced. And so perhaps over your coffee or quiet moment, ask yourself what passion(s) you have and who you have to share them with.
If, like me, your passions are fully mated, then great … pull those friends in closer to you as they are a key to truly rewarding moments. But, if there are holes in your friends’ circle, then consider seeking one out. They are out there and while they may be strangers now, your passion will unite you both.
As W.B. Yeats wrote … there are no strangers here; only friends you haven’t yet met!
