As many of you know, we move A LOT-I mean like 5 times in the past 8 years A LOT. When we get to a new place we have very little connection or community. My husband dives right into work (which means 12-14 hour days) and I am left to figure out the rest of our "social" lives.
I am not a shy person by any means, in fact, quite the opposite. Most places we've moved to, we've ending up making friends who are not military, so they don't really "get it". Not in a bad way, they are wonderful people and so many of them have become life long friends, but very often they want to take their time getting to know one another, but let's be honest, when you're only going to live someplace for 2ish years, time really isn't on your side when it comes to establishing true, lasting friendships, so I like to fast track it, which comes off as, well, let's just say it overwhelming and weird.
I often find myself asking super deep and personal questions, and then telling very personal stories to people we've just met. It's not because I want the whole world to know my business (although, I realize the irony of that statement as I am typing a blog post for the world to see) But rather, I have a finite amount of time with each and everyone I meet and I want to make real connections.
I want to have those friends that know my goofiness, and I want to know theirs. I want to have those friends that I can call crying on a bad day and they will come over just to be a listening ear, and I want to be that friend to someone as well. I want to be that friend they are so excited to share super awesome news with, so I can rejoice in their blessings.....The problem is, for most people it takes years to really develop those types of friendship, and let's be honest, us military folks don't have years to get to know you, in years we'll be living someplace else!
So, if I just met you and I overshare, and then ask questions that cause you to have a TMI moment of your own, remember, I'm not TRYING to be an overwhelming weirdo, I just want to get to know the real you, so we can share a friendship that will last a lifetime (even if it means I may be far away sometimes!). Believe me, it is TOTALLY not you, It's me...
And for those of you who saw past the overwhelming weirdness and really became a true friend, Thank you, your love and friendship means the world, even if we happen to end up a world away!
