"Distance means so little when someone means so much."
- Tom McNeal
One of the greatest outcomes of the information age is it has given us the ability to communicate with our loved ones in real-time, no matter where they are in the world. We can do a video chat with someone on the other side of the globe and catch up with them as if they were sitting in the next room. Through social media we can receive updates from our friends and family on everything and anything going on in their lives. The people closest to us may move away from us physically, but we have the ability to stay connected digitally.
It can be easy to lose touch with our loved ones, particularly those not living under the same roof as us. The flipside of the information age benefits is that we can sometimes experience information overload by the endless stream of updates from the people we are connected with. It can be tough to keep up! Hopefully, in the midst of keeping tabs on our loved ones, we are not forgetting to reach out to those who we hold dearest to our hearts. It happens. The days roll by and the lack of contact accumulates.
Photo by Dziana Hasanbekava on Pexels
Sometimes, the lack of contact can become so lengthy it may feel awkward to reach out. Perhaps they are thinking the same thing. It can feel like a game of chicken to see who will reach out first. "Well, I reached out to them last." Or, "If they want to talk, they'll reach out." We should then ask ourselves, "Do I want to communicate with them?" If so, reach out! It should not matter how long it has been. A simple, "I was thinking about you," is all that is needed. They may be overjoyed to hear from you, wishing they reached out sooner. Or not. But there is only one way to find out.
Who have you been meaning to reach out to but just can't bring yourself to follow through? What's your reasoning? Is it valid? What's the worst that can happen? If you end up choosing not to reach out, you should have good reasons. If you feel like your reasoning is just a lame excuse, reach out to them and tell them why. See what happens. You may end up sharing a good laugh about the whole situation and having a great exchange with them. There's only one way to find out, though. Simply reach out.
More Wellness!
The New York Times: We Don’t Just Need to Connect — We Need to Reconnect
Rewire: Why Reconnecting With Old Friends is Worth the Effort
