Would you drive twelve hours to attend a high school reunion?
We did.
And it was worth it.
My husband and I recently attended a reunion of his classmates from the small missionary school he graduated from. The school was in Germany and his classmates are scattered across the globe, so there was no hometown school to return to. Instead, the class voted to gather at a state park in the mountains of Georgia. We spent a weekend talking, eating, and enjoying the scenery.
Most of the attendees traveled considerable distances. Some drove through the night in order to spend a few hours visiting old friends before turning around and driving right home again. Others flew in from across the country and beyond. One came all the way from Cambodia.
Why were these people willing to expend the time and cost just to spend a few hours talking with people they haven’t seen in years? And why was an introvert like myself—who is not an alum—looking forward to the event?
Because people and relationships matter.
Because this particular group shares a bond of love, acceptance, and faith that makes them easy to connect with. Although we haven’t seen any of them since the previous reunion ten years ago, we found it easy to sit down and share lives with each other.
Reestablishing those connections was worth the investment.
The value of staying connected
Humans are social creatures, therefore meaningful relationships are important to our well-being. Here are a few of the benefits of good social networks:
- They keep our memory and cognitive function sharper as we age.
- They help us deal with stress. Those with good social networks are less likely to feel depressed and anxious.
- People with strong social connections generally enjoy higher levels of satisfaction at work.
- Healthy friendships provide us with others to lean on and gain insight from.
- Reconnecting with old friends reinforces happy memories and enables the passing down of important family history, local lore, or institutional experience.
The list goes on. The point is, staying connected with people is important, but in our busy modern lives it takes intentional effort to build and maintain healthy relationships. Even with friends who only live an hour away!
Technology and social media help—but only to a point. Ultimately, there is no substitute for meeting face-to-face.
So take a moment to consider who you need to reconnect with. Then…
- Check your schedule for the next few months.
- Select possible dates.
- Contact those friends and make a specific plan (date and location).
7 ideas to spur your reconnecting
- If cooking is your thing, invite them to dinner.
- If cooking isn’t your thing, suggest meeting at a restaurant for dinner. (Or maybe Sunday brunch.)
- Find an activity you both enjoy and propose attending together. A concert, fall festival, sports event, etc.
- If distance is an issue, how about meeting half-way between your homes at a restaurant, park, or other location. For example: My niece-in-law regularly drives several hours to a town in the middle of the state to spend time with her sister, who lives on the opposite side.
- Invent a reason to throw a party. Invite friends you haven’t seen lately to a game night, football party, murder mystery dinner, or whatever strikes your fancy.
- Plan ahead when you travel. Look for opportunities to see old friends when you are passing through an area. For example: On the way home from my husband’s reunion, we took a detour to spend a delightful afternoon with his college roommate.
- Don’t be afraid to invite yourself over. Your old friends might be delighted to say yes. For example: My college roommate was coming to the area for a family event. When other housing fell through she asked if they could stay with us. I had a busy schedule and couldn’t offer to feed them dinner, but they already had plans anyway so it didn’t matter. As a result, we enjoyed two long evenings hanging out together. (If they hadn’t stayed with us we probably wouldn’t have seen them at all.)
I hope these suggestions help you reconnect and stay connected to the people that matter in your life. When we look back on a life well-lived, it’s the people who matter. So invest wisely!
