H and G...Hi and Goodbye

ND Grotto candles offering prayer intentions

To say that there were tons of ACErs and friends at this week's Notre Dame game would not be an understatement. To say that it was so good to see them would also be quite true.

To say that it was great to catch up and talk with them would be pretty much bologna. And I don't mean this in a bad way - it's just that it is SO difficult to have quality conversations with people at such events as football games and tailgates because you try to see too many people in too short of an amount of time. (And when I say "you" I obviously mean me as well.)

That's not to say sometimes you can't have solid conversations at these kinds of events, but, in all honesty, interactions are oftentimes reduced to something along the lines of

Person A: "Hey! How's it going? Good to see you." (hug)
Person B: "Doing pretty well. How about you - what have you been up to?"
Person A: "Oh, you know, same old, same old. How's school going?"
Person B: "The kids are great - full of energy. It's hard to get them to keep still a lot of the time, but they're a good group."
up walks Person C: "Oh hey guys! How are you?"
Person A: "Doing well, yourself?"
Person C: "Oh, you know..."
...and so on.

Is this a bad conversation? A waste of time? No. But in some ways, it can be, unfortunately, just going through the motions.

Human interactions are so important, but it is up to each of us to be more aware about the types of conversations we are having. Will it be just hi and goodbye, check I've seen you? Or will it be truly taking the time to see how someone is doing?

Yes, I realize time is one of the keys here. Wouldn't it be nice to simply add hours in the day so we had more time for being present to one another? But clearly that's not an option.

Plan B? Let's ensure we make every moment count. Easier said than done, right? But remember, time truly is a gift. And it is up to us to decide how to use it.