flâneur

possibilities - by Elaine - manners & mystery

elainewrites.substack.com · 861 words · saved by 1 readers

How do I build deeper friendships? What does “deeper” even mean? This question has been on my mind lately, and yet, I don’t subscribe to a platonic ideal of friendship. I don’t think friendships have to follow a certain path of progression to achieve a “standard of excellence.” We need all sorts of friends in our lives. The ones we catch up with infrequently over dinner and the ones who witness us week to week or day by day. The friends we only see at the climbing gym or dance studio or pickleball court and those we go on physical and spiritual journeys with. We need them all. As an adult, I have a hard time defining what a “close friend” means, and I think this is because old measures of closeness—like time spent together or how much “fun” we’re having—no longer hold true as we acquire more responsibilities that make demands on our time. Thanks for reading manners & mystery! Subscribe for free to receive new posts. Upgrade to paid Many adults feel vaguely unfulfilled in their friendsh

Henri Matisse, 1922 How do I build deeper friendships? What does “deeper” even mean? This question has been on my mind lately, and yet, I don’t subscribe to a platonic ideal of friendship. I don’t think friendships have to follow a certain path of progression to achieve a “standard of excellence.” We need all sorts of friends in our lives. The ones we catch up with infrequently over dinner and the ones who witness us week to week or day by day. The friends we only see at the climbing gym or dance studio or pickleball court and those we go on physical and spiritual journeys with. We need…

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