The Gathering
I recently got together with some friends from a past profession/life.
Every time we’re together, which is not nearly often enough for me, I pretty much just sit back and take it all in. It’s as if I’m an audience member and the studio is a busy barroom somewhere in the middle of where we all currently work and play. Adjacent to a book store, of course.
Most of the ladies have since moved on from the company where we learned more about family atmosphere, fun, consistency, punctuation, hierarchy and disappointment than we had known before.
On this night, in listening to the different conversations floating above the wine and the (diet) appetizers, I was able to somewhat catch up on who is doing what, where and how.
Some seem content with where they are. Some feel the need to move on to new endeavors. Others are relishing the fact that they can spend more time with their new families while trying to forget the years when work/life balance was little more than a terrible, terrible joke.
We talked ourselves back in time. We brought up memories of each other when (or in some cases, before) we first met. About our first impressions and whether those became known to be true or simply misconceptions. About what bad drivers some of us are and how nice it is that we can admit it to ourselves and warn others prior to having them become passengers. About the time at least one of us made the interns cry. We can only confirm one intern was brought to tears, however, but I’ve the feeling there are more who simply chose to mask their anguish behind a “can do” attitude until no one was looking.
I remember when I somehow morphed my way into This Group several years ago. It took about a year before I’d made enough progress to be satisfied, but I did it. It was a pretty tight-knit group of individuals and a variety of personalities. Soon, they grew to simply adore my…charisma. Even if they didn’t always “get it.”
This Group set much of the foundation for where I am today. Professionally, personally and physically.
Although I came from a company that specialized in working with “outdoor industries,” it was with This Group I learned the importance of exercise and accepted that it can be done with other people, not always alone and stopping just because I had a slight desire to do so.
With help from This Group, I kayaked in my first Eppie’s Great Race, completed several half-marathon walks and even continued to ride in organized bicycle races with others and alone.
This Group also got me starting to think I could/should be able to run more than the yard or two I’d been able to breathlessly complete before.
Right now, I kind of hate This Group for That.