On Seeking Connections
I don’t connect well with people. I never have and probably never will. I learned early on in my life that I am different and a bit too quirky for most people and because of that, I maintain my distance — even with family.
It’s not that I don’t want to connect with people because I do, and I’ve managed to maintain a few close friendships — three, to be exact. They all live in Virginia where I grew up and I am now in Oklahoma. One has been a friend since high school and the other two I met in college. They don’t mind my quirkiness because they have some quirky ways about them too.
Without the internet, I wouldn’t be able to connect with anyone unless I went back to writing snail-mail letters. I don’t own a cellphone and I have a landline without long distance billing — so I cannot even talk to friends and family back home in Virginia on the telephone unless they call me.
So how do we connect? We do emails, video chats, and Facebook messaging. For someone like myself who enjoys my solitude, these means of communication suit me well and they help me to stay connected to the few friends and family I have left.
Shortform response to Lucy Dan 蛋小姐 (she/her/她)’s shortform prompt — What are some new ways of connecting with others that you’ve developed over the years?
Lori Carlson writes Poetry, Fiction, Articles, Creative Non-Fiction and Personal Essays. Most of her topics are centered around Relationships, Spirituality, Life Lessons, Mental Health, Nature, Loss, Death, and the LGBTQ+ community. Check out her personal Medium blog here.
