Feeding My Ignorance

Wow - a whole year without a single post in this blog - actually well over a year 

...

It doesn't surprise me that there were no posts to be had during our house search and house move - that took up a lot of time and internet searching.  There was no shortage of "thoughts" going on - but no real opportunity to sit down and form a reasonable post about it.  Looking back there are a couple of drafts that I started but never got to the end of.

The New Year gave me pause for thought - as always at this time of year (I suspect for most people) there are reflections on not just the past year - but on all the years that one has survived.  Reaching my 70th hogmanay is not an idea that really crossed my mind in the past - and certainly when I was younger there were no thoughts about how many hogmanays I might see.  One thing for sure - I won't see another 70 

As the years have past the way in which the New Year has been welcomed has, of course, changed very much.  The idea of a first footer arriving with a lump of coal, some bread and a bottle is something that (not for all) fallen into just memory and not actual practice.  The idea of welcoming a stranger anyway would be seen as slightly peculiar - never mind the fact that the actuality was that often someone was sent outside just before the bells to be sure that the First Foot was "appropriate".  (as for the First Foot claiming a kiss from every woman in the house - well that would be seen in a different light these days as well!)

Talk about twisting fate!

This year - as most recently - New Year was celebrated with just three of us.  No longer a "gang" of youngsters wandering around Glasgow looking for the next party.  I have celebrated with many people through the years.  That got me thinking about the way in which people come into and go out of our life journey.  Walking beside us (at least metaphorically) for a while before finding a slightly different path.  I have written quite a bit in these blogs about the different sorts of friendships that we develop over the years and the way in which we become linked to other people.

There is, of course, a school of thought that we are all connected and that the connections are simply tighter or looser with specific other people.  Some of the connections may not even be direct, but only through others - and we can choose whether to - so to speak - cut out the middle man and pull the connection tighter.

Over the years the strength of connection varies - getting looser through time until something binds them closer again.

There are people that I have spent the New Year with over past years that I now have no idea what they are doing or even where they are.  There are people who were - for a time - very important in my life - friends, work colleagues, members of musical groups - who now are "somewhere".  Of course, I am now at an age where folks I knew long ago are simply no longer with us - and that also gives cause for reflection.  This year Terry was Promoted to Glory - there were a few years of my life when he was an ever present part.  There is at least one person who I have reconnected with in the last year that I hadn't 'spoken' to for many years.

So the changes continue - people float in and out.

All of this has challenged me a little - and so I commence on 70 for 70.  Between my 70th Hogmanay and my 70th Birthday I intend to contact 70 selected people from my past that I haven't communicated enough with in recent times.  In some cases I already have a way of contacting them - in others it will require some detective work.  It will be interesting to see what happens.