Connecting. Retinitis Pigmentosa.

This has been a busy week full of 'connecting'. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner with friends and family. Running early in the morning and connecting is fun. I realized that our last run we were so busy chatting suddenly we had arrived back home! Love it. Breakfast with a friend this week was so much fun. Look forward to our next time :). An evening of visiting with another couple that we cherish as friends on their deck was fun. Another evening of dinner and then sitting out late on our deck with some friends connecting was fun. Even sitting by one of my good friends and colleagues at a seminar on Ethics (which was excellent, by the way) was fun. Infact, we were afraid we were being a little too noisy as we were quietly laughing and enjoying each other's company. Afterwards, a lady came up to us and commented on how I was connecting and interacting and wondered if I was simply training my dog! I loved that my friend said I was a good connector but I needed this dog! Also on tap was a wedding for a niece. The lunch was held at Herm's Inn which was cool - close to where Steve grew up.

Connecting and Retinitis Pigmentosa. I prefer smaller crowds to connect. Although, I really enjoy speaking to a large group which is a different kind of connecting. Mingling is a little more tricky such as at a reception, open house or shower. Many times I am with Steve which makes it easy ... we are mingling together. However, those times when I am alone or with a friend or family member I have found a few tips that help: As we are interacting - meeting new people; I put out my hand first and initiate that connection. As the conversation lulls and its time to move on I may ask the person I am visiting with if they see someone else that I know to go visit with. Sometimes it is challenging when someone comes up and begins to talk and might not say their name ... it may take a few minutes to try to figure out who the person is, although often by the conversation you can tell or recognize their voice. So awesome when someone says Hey Becky this is ________ and the conversation can begin without the wondering :). Dinner today at our home with family. The # keeps growing - we are at twelve. I pulled out a peach recipe that I love from a friend when my kids were very young. It has me thinking about her and wondering how she is doing and wanting to reconnect. Update: The peach cobbler is gone. It was a little soupy but I just pulled out spoons and bowls instead of the plates and forks to eat it with :). My brother-in-law acknowledged my flexibility about continuing to pull out a little more chicken as the numbers grew :). As I reflected on this post, I remembered an earlier post on connecting and some of the challenges and blessings with vision loss and trying to connect from my perspective. Hope you have a great Monday. We are running 9 this morning in our marathon training journey. I look forward to the connecting and the sense of accomplishment afterwards. How do you like to connect? I find blogging such a connection.