Gone are the days...

A friend and I were talking the other day about nothing in particular. It's funny how that happens. And when you are done talking you don't even remember what it was that you said. The conversation may have been meaningless or perhaps not. But now consciously thinking about that conversation, I am intrigued by its carelessness. It didn't matter what we talked about or for how long we lingered on subjects that were trivial in nature. There were no decisions to be made, no points to deliberate, no conclusions to reach. We were free. Free to speak of anything, everything, or nothing. I often find myself caught up in the realism that seems to be adulthood. Responsibility consumes my thoughts...family, job, finances, and other practical issues. I don't spend enough time just shootin' the breeze with my wife or close friends.

When I was in middle and even high school it seems like all I did was waste time. I would often spend hours in my room...alone, listening to music and drawing or making jewelry. Yes, that used to be a hobby of mine and I enjoyed it. My friends and I would spend full days hangin' out. We would pick up pizzas from the local pie shop and play Nintendo all night long. I even remember sneaking out into the backyard of one of my friends' house to take a leak. As flushing the toilet would alert his parents that we were still awake.

Those were the days. I think that we all need to waste more time enjoying ourselves and talking about nothing. For that is how relationships are made and kept. People always say that it is good to 'take time to smell the roses'. What I think they actually mean is that we should take time from being adults to enjoy the careless bliss that is being a kid and enjoying things that may not be important.