Attentiveness

When our lives are on the fast track, it’s easy to neglect the people who matter most to us. Replacing neglect with nurture is sometimes as simple as being more attentive. And attentiveness is more rewarding and less time-consuming than you might think. When a dear friend who lives overseas came to visit, I anticipated that our time together would be, as always, life-giving and rich. However, after she left I realized something had felt different. Was our relationship changing after all these years? As I reflected on our interaction, I recognized that I’d been preoccupied with a project due shortly after her departure. By anxiously living in the future rather than in the moment with her, I had allowed what could have been an enriching, rejuvenating visit to become just another commitment on my calendar. Though I’d been with