Quarterly Meetings

Friendships and scheduled quarterly meetings do not appear to have a natural connection, but I have discovered that quarterly meetings are a perfect way to keep friendships connected.

Many years ago three other women and I became friends through a common group, but today find ourselves not connecting through daily life. Then a few years ago something happened and one of us needed support. The small band was rallied and we gathered again. Several months after that, one of the others contacted the rest and we met again to check in. That day as we were getting ready to part I suggested we meet quarterly and that we take turns being responsible to make that meeting happen. Our quarterly meetings are now on the calendar and its been so refreshing to see these women more consistently.

There is another small group of friends who met regularly several years ago, we called ourselves "The Coffee Chicks". Though close at one time, we have generally lost track of each other. Pamela, one of the Coffee Chicks, was committed to getting us back together and recently made that happen. It was wonderful to catch up with each other and realize we still have friendship between us. After spending an entire afternoon together there was reluctance to part ways - which was when I suggested the quarterly meeting idea! They loved it and Sharon took the lead to plan our next gathering.

I am writing about this because there are many of us who would appreciate and benefit from connecting with certain friends but don't necessarily know how to reach out again, or with our full schedules are not sure how we could maintain another friendship (outside of being Facebook friends). This is why I love the idea of quarterly meetings. Its an intentional but easy way of keeping connections that are personal and allow for a wider community, which is what I love.

If you have a way you connect with friends, please share your ideas through your comments. I love sharing and if there are enough ideas I will put all of them in a future post for all of us to benefit from!

4 Yesterday I wrote A Real Man, you can read it here.

Comments

[Joan Null]

Sheri - I love that idea. The last thing most of us need is one more weekly or monthly commitment. Quarterly is a great interval, far enough apart to not burden our schedules, and close enough to keep us current in each others lives. And scheduling is key - we all know our good intentions don't just happen.

[Sheri Carlstrom]

Joan,
Thanks! I agree, the interval seems to be a great fit. I love your comment about good intentions.
~Sheri