out of sight
out of sight…out of mind. isn't that how that old saying goes? i've never been particularly fond of that phrase. probably because i associate it with a negative. and because we all know that things that are blocked out of the mind and out of the sightline don't really go away…they just linger there waiting to be rediscovered. and i really don't like the thought of anything or anyone languishing in wait.
but i've been struggling with this turn of phrase lately. while it hasn't seemed appropriate in my daily life up until now, i find it creeping into the corners as i evaluate current and former relationships and friendships, both professional and personal. it's the nature of convenience for some of these interactions to fall by the wayside, casualties of casualness if you will. friendships of favor and circumstance.
perhaps i'm projecting too much. it's easy to account for the bustle of daily life, the little things that mount and take over allowing little time to think of, much less do something about dwindling communications. and in the very clipped and weird shorthand of social media and texting, staying in touch feels even more impersonal than before. you might "like" someone's photo/video/link, but it's not quite the same as writing out a couple of sentences or, god forbid, picking up the phone. i admit to my failures in this case; i hate the phone. i'm a writer by nature and would rather reel off a 1,000 word email or see you in person than get on the talking machine. but i will.
what i do think is important is to make the gesture. to take the time to share a few words that are meaningful rather than leave things unspoken or unwritten. unfortunately, it's a lesson that's been reinforced so many times in my world in the past five years: make the effort to stay in touch, don't get so caught up in yourself that you can't make time for those who are important to you, and make your feelings known.
for those of you i try to get through to, but can't seem to reach: you might be out of sight, but you are not out of my mind.
but i've been struggling with this turn of phrase lately. while it hasn't seemed appropriate in my daily life up until now, i find it creeping into the corners as i evaluate current and former relationships and friendships, both professional and personal. it's the nature of convenience for some of these interactions to fall by the wayside, casualties of casualness if you will. friendships of favor and circumstance.
perhaps i'm projecting too much. it's easy to account for the bustle of daily life, the little things that mount and take over allowing little time to think of, much less do something about dwindling communications. and in the very clipped and weird shorthand of social media and texting, staying in touch feels even more impersonal than before. you might "like" someone's photo/video/link, but it's not quite the same as writing out a couple of sentences or, god forbid, picking up the phone. i admit to my failures in this case; i hate the phone. i'm a writer by nature and would rather reel off a 1,000 word email or see you in person than get on the talking machine. but i will.
what i do think is important is to make the gesture. to take the time to share a few words that are meaningful rather than leave things unspoken or unwritten. unfortunately, it's a lesson that's been reinforced so many times in my world in the past five years: make the effort to stay in touch, don't get so caught up in yourself that you can't make time for those who are important to you, and make your feelings known.
for those of you i try to get through to, but can't seem to reach: you might be out of sight, but you are not out of my mind.
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