Hurt Locker / Sitting in Silence
Go inward my meditation guide said. Go inward. It seems lately that going inward is what I have been doing a lot lately.… Continue
Relationships Build Life
Published: Aug 4th, 2025
We often talk about growth in terms of big wins, but it’s the small, daily interactions that quietly mold us. A smile from a stranger, a brief chat in line, a shared love of dumplings—these moments may seem insignificant, but they build the very fabric of our human experience. This piece explores how intentional conversations and paying attention can reset your world in the most beautiful way.
I love reimagining life. I love sitting with my current situation and thinking how much more beautiful it could be. As I work through my own 90 day reset, I have been challenging myself to think about how I can do things differently — what little changes I can make to get something different out of my time on this earth.
I love a paradigm shift. I love looking at things differently — like listening to a song that you’ve known so well and then hearing the lyrics from a different point of view — and then it takes on a completely different meaning. “Why haven’t I heard that before?”
The only way that I know how to do this is to have conversations. For those of you who know me — you know that I talk to everyone — all the time. I open myself up daily to people to ask simple questions.
Last night, as I was waiting for my daughter at a new restaurant, I stopped a guy getting takeout — and simply asked him if he liked the food. He stopped and gave me an entire rundown of the menu. He delighted in the dumplings and the Pad Thai. We spoke for a good 10 minutes about food. He was excited to share — (and yes — he was correct on his choices — they were excellent).
His eyes lit up — because someone asked him a question about something he really loved. And that, my friends, is how this works. It’s really that simple. Human connection is what drives us every day. BUT…
Our days become a product of reactivity. We spin, we panic, we shut down and we don’t engage. Never mind listening. Never mind paying attention to what’s happening, we just get tunnel visioned and we lose sight of our humanness.
Part of my own reset is to pay attention. No kidding — this is on the goal list. No distracted scrolling while on the phone. No checking emails as someone is trying to tell me something important to them. No jumping ahead in a conversation because I think that what I have to say is more important than what is currently being said. I am taking the time to allow conversations to settle around me — and listen.
This is what builds relationships — and this is what feeds a change of heart, creates understanding and perhaps a change in your perspective. Our world is a very divided one. No one is listening — and everyone wants to be right. It isn’t about being right. It’s about being heard, understood and taking in different viewpoints in order to perhaps see things a little differently than what we believed to be true. Change your mind? Maybe just change the view.
