Schmoozing

When I was a kid, I was really shy.  Painfully shy at times.  I'm not sure what happened between then and now, but somewhere along the line I found I really enjoy schmoozing with people.  I love hearing their names and learning about who they are and what they do.  I was an alumnus representative at an event my college held tonight for interested/admitted students from the area, and I had a blast talking with the students and their parents.  It wasn't just schmoozing for the sake of schmoozing--I think people are endlessly fascinating, and it's useful and gratifying to learn their unique stories.  Everyone tells her or his story differently, so even if the basic arc is one I have heard many times before, I learn something new with each telling.  At the best of times, my interest in the person I'm talking to completely overtakes any concern for how she or he is perceiving me, and I'm able to relax into the interaction and the communication.  As far as I can see it, that's where the divine dwells, in moments of pure curiosity and exchange, unimpeded by ego.  Of course, they're brief, and my ego gets in the way all the time, but every so often I'll come close to that divine spark, and it leaves me feeling energized and hopeful and full of joy.

Unexpectedly Running into Old Friends

Dear friends, I tried to take a good picture of this drawing, and then I tried to edit it to come out clear and crisp, but it just was not happening.  I think it's because my pen was drying up, and the lines weren't bold enough.  Anyway . . . today I ran into some old friends from my childhood whom I hadn't seen in far too long.  It was quite unexpected, but not startling.  I find that running into people I'm really comfortable with tends not to be startling, even when they're out of the normal context.  And when the universe throws us together again, it's a reassuring reminder that our worlds are not so big, the distances between us not so vast, and the connections uniting us surprisingly powerful.