I'm feeling a little bit nostalgic today......... maybe it's because I'm under the weather but I got to thinking about the here and now, the moments we live and the people we love.
Do you ever get annoyed by a parent or sibling or friend? I know I do often I will readily admit it. But one day, those annoyances will be dearly missed. Even though we don't consciously hope for tomorrow and we expect that the future is a guarantee - deep down we know that it really isn't. We know on some conscious level that no matter what we should appreciate those closest to us as often as we can, but we don't. It's so cliche isn't it, the "you don't know what you've got till it's gone" saying?
As I get older I have started to realize more and more who the really true and well-intentioned people are around me, and I want to keep them close. I will do just about anything for those people. And those who are not well-intentioned or are far too concerned with themselves to care about how anyone else feels, they can kiss my white ass! Truly, I would rather not have them around at all. I know I can look at certain people and think that if they weren't a part of my life anymore, I really wouldn't be bothered. I don't think that is a callous statement at all, it's just the truth.
The best of friends don't have to keep in touch or see each other all the time to jump back into that wonderful friendship. You can be miles and miles apart from someone but still know that they care for you. Life takes us all down different paths, but those paths are never really that far apart. They are only as far apart as we allow them to be.
I know that when I am the age that my mother is now, I will miss her dearly, even those little ways in which she annoys me by loving me or caring too much. The other night she and I were talking, and I started to get annoyed when she was peppering me with questions, but I thought to myself "one day I will really miss this" and I went and kissed her on the top of the head, and then I left the room laughing to myself. And she, knowing me so well, just smiled and didn't say a word.
There is a huge difference between 17 and 27 as we all know or will find out. At 17 your parents are a nuisance and seem to prevent you from getting into all kinds of fun or trouble, at 27 they are your friends. There are a few years when you really wonder if they know what they are talking about, but then you find out that they really do. Even if you disagree with them partially or completely, they will always be there for you.
So love them and everyone around you dearly, because you never know when you might not have tomorrow.