Friends
There are two women I met who are also going to be here for a while. I’m psyched about that. It’s funny, making new friends is not one of the goals I had in mind when I came, but we’re starting to bond, giggling a lot, sharing frustrations, swapping favorite food stories, telling each other about our kids, etc, and it’s nice. What a revelation! I know that must sound weird, but I can tend to be a little anti-social, so it really is a bit of a revelation for me. And the really interesting thing for me is that feeling these friendly connections forming seems important to rediscovering myself, re-connecting to my own needs and wellbeing, starting to feel more human again. It’s comforting to have someone to fall in with – whether for an instant between activities, over a meal, or a good laugh during class. Just saying. You know, I’ve actually read a couple things recently about the importance of friendship and social connections – even just being in the company of others – to a person’s health, quality of life, and even lifespan. Hmm. That’s starting to resonate with me. True? Maybe. One more thing that feels good? For sure.
July 9th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
Social connections, especially for womenfolk has been shown to strengthen health, quality of life, sense of wellbeing etc. Inward connections to spirit and self can do likewise. I appreciate so much the respect that staff and other residents give to the outliers, the ones who choose to be on the fringe of the social beehive and chatter- kind like Bowen’s theory of attachment- securely attached yet autonomous and free to be self-determined without reprisal from the host/community. The Deerfield Spa accomodates all and her residents graciously respect the diversity of the community of residents.