Friday, May 6, 2011

Today's fortune: May 6, 2011

Today's fortune: Continue your present conversation for some valuable insight.

I've had a lot of pleasing conversations in my lifetime. The very best one I've ever had is ongoing; it's the day-in, day-out conversation that is the love letter Jamie and I share with one another. It's been going on for nearly a decade now, and I am riveted every single day.

But I've had many other memorable conversations as well. One in particular stands out. A couple years ago for my 30th birthday, Jamie threw me a surprise party. My good friend from Chicago, Alfonso, flew into town to attend. He stayed with us for a couple nights. The day after my birthday party, we took Alfonso to all the cool sites in Kansas City, and devoured great barbecue at Arthur Bryant's along with my buddy Garrett. After dinner, the four of us came back to the Kelsey hacienda and settled on the back porch with a few beers, some comfy chairs and an evening's worth of great conversation. We talked about religion, politics, family, love, death and everything in between, into the wee hours of the night.

Some long-running conversations can turn bad. Back in college, one of my friends and I had constant debates, conversations and arguments, mostly about religion and politics. We were always amicable, but there was a tension, too, because we were on polar opposites of the spectrum on almost every single subject. Eventually, he went a little too far, and I had to give the friendship up. I couldn't take it anymore. I refused to dedicate more of my life to a pointless exercise.

Today I had another great conversation, with my Little Brother, Rayne. Here's a picture of Rayne, age 11, from one of our previous outings at the Liberty Memorial:


Today we didn't do anything special. We just kept each other company. And we talked. Well, Rayne talked; I listened. It was wonderful. He talked about school, his new eyeglasses, the girls he likes, the girls who like him (the list doesn't overlap), his cats, my cats, and the not-so-ordinary life of a typical 11-year-old American boy.

You know, I view this blog as a conversation. Maybe it's a bit one-sided, but still. And I think this fortune is telling me to push on, because some valuable insight rests at the end of the rainbow.


GREEN WEEK: Day 6

What I didn't tell you about my afternoon with Rayne was the setting. We drove to a little pocket park near his place and enjoyed the beautiful weather, the green trees, the blooming honeysuckle and the chirping birds.

5 comments: