Tiffany Painter

There are people who accumulate friends like I amass take-out napkins. They don’t go searching for them, they just seem to end up still there after the meal is over. I am not one of those people. I have plenty of people floating around in my outer circles, but the number of people who made it to the inner circle drops off significantly. I dearly appreciate those people who have made it in. My circle of people includes someone from childhood who has known me longer than I’ve known myself, someone I met through motherhood who knew me when I didn’t know what I was doing, several who formed an alliance with me when we worked together and it stuck after we left that job/career, and a newer friend who has given me confidence as I start down a new creative path. When you are a child, friends come and go with every new school year. There will be a few who stick around longer than others, but each phase of life brings about change in the people surrounding you. As an adult, the changes are not as defined year to year, and the opportunities to expand your friendships are not as easy as expanding other parts of yourself. When new people come into my life now, and we click almost instantly, it is invigorating. This time I flew across the country – braving a seriously troubled system – and spent a week away from all of my people. I expected to find peaceful solitude and some much needed me time, but I left with a few more additions to my inner circle. All of the people there were friendly and it was easy to be absorbed into the group. But like school groups, when the school year ends, some people will slip to the outer rings, still there but not as close. It was surprising to come back home and reintegrate back into reality and find a few of those people stayed in the inner circle. New text groups are still active, and about real life things: family stuff, books, movies, local changing vegetation. It has only been a week, but I have hope that these new friendships will stick around. At a certain point in life, it seems you can get to the good stuff faster than you could as a child. Score one for getting older.

10/28

morning visitor
braving the frosty surface
welcoming the day

10/30

ideas lurking
beckoning me from the trees
just beyond my reach

10/31

week of creating
inspiration all around
heart brimming over

11/4

hidden in the trees
left dormant by the new season
dreams of warmer days

11/7

before snow covers
sun highlights peaks and valleys
peaceful morning view