Time, depth, and presence

Great relationships require time, depth, and presence.

Time means being with someone.

Depth means engaging with someone beyond the surface of daily life.

Presence means allowing someone to occupy your full attention.

Time is the easiest. You can watch a movie or grab coffee or take a drive together.

Depth is a harder. You have to let down your guard and wander intellectual or emotional roads that are unpaved, or even treacherous.

Presence is the hardest. The world is constantly baiting you with a siren song of immediate gratification. You have to resist, and focus with every fiber of your being on the person in front of you.

Relationships that neglect one or more of these attributes atrophy. Relationships that embody them all flourish. I am learning both of these truths in parallel.