Have you ever tried to not need people? To just quit them cold turkey? This decision may have been in response to being hurt one too many times, having one too many people comment on your “fuller figure,” getting Diet Coke in the drive thru when you clearly asked for Coke (like you would ever order that low-cal swill!) … there are a number of triggers that can result in the decision to be done with people.
After all, people are frustrating. They make stupid decisions, say the wrong thing and are sometimes royal pains in the keister. So why can’t we go full-on John the Baptist and live in the wilderness with some wild honey and be done with them?
Unfortunately we’re made for relationships. I know — it’s so inconvenient.
God created us to require interaction with others and seek connections.
Now you may be thinking of that person you know who is precariously close to recluse status. We all know the type. It’s the person who doesn’t remotely enjoy speaking to fellow humans, thinks smiling is wholly unnecessary and would rather exist singularly in the wilderness as the leader of a genetically advanced wolf pack than have to step foot in a grocery store. Oh, you don’t know anyone like that? I suppose my brother is the only one…
At any rate, the overwhelming majority of us need other people. We need them to tell us when we’re being ridiculous, irrational or unfair. We need them to talk us through our pain, out of our slump and up into our happy place. We need them to laugh with, cry with and eat ice cream with. We need those friends, family members and connection-people, no matter how little we may want them at the time.
I was reminded of this particular need after I had dinner with a sweet friend last week. We somehow wound up staying at the restaurant for three hours, and after I left I was surprised at how refreshed I felt. Even after a long day and being so tired, I felt ridiculously positive after spending that time with my friend.
It just really hit home the need to find those friendships and relationships that enrich our lives and invest in them. Taking the time to email, call, text, Facebook, tweet and spend time with those people is so vital to our lives because that’s how we’re made.
So go call a friend, make an effort and invest in that relationship. It’s worth it.
Margaret, The Rope Editor
