I did not know it could happen to me, but I have had a happy and fulfilling visit.
The first thing is that we have a warm and welcoming place to stay with a relative.
Then, we drove to another state for some business and had a wonderful visit with friends there.
Having the experience of building lasting community is new to me.
It is a deeply comforting thing to experience.
After living most of my life in emotional isolation due to child trauma, it is a new venture to have friends whom I can trust.
We have kept in touch during the many months that I have been out of town.
It was so much fun to pick up the conversation in person and to share projects which have only been seen in photos.
We have built a long term sense of intimacy and trust through many conversations about family issues, carreer goals and possiblities, and fabric designs and their executiion.
What ties it all together is the respect we have for one another’s lives, both triumphs and celebrations and challenges and suffering.
It is natural now for me to see how developing authentic friendships results in a feeling of comfort in the world.
Knowing I can go from place to place and still have good friendships is a wonderful way to travel and to share adventures.
The communication tools of social media speed up the immediacy of staying in contact.
The good feeling which comes through is enhanced with a face-to-face visit.
I look forward to continuing my travels, to sharing my experiences long distance, and then to have the delight of in-person visits.
© 2019 Kathryn Hardage
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