Lucas Week #15 - Life’s Better with Friends
There is a bonus to doing what you want to do. Maybe a roller coaster that drops your stomach or the buzz of a concert that washes over your ears in waves—those are peak moments. I used to do them by myself. I went to concerts and theme parks alone, and I'm here to tell you, I enjoyed myself. There is a liberating sense in doing what you want, where, when, and with whom you want.
Then I started sharing them with the people that matter to me the most: my friends.
And unexpectedly, the peaks were even higher.
It wasn't that the activities themselves were so different—it was the energy that came with them. Screaming on a ride with someone, laughing at a joke told in line, dancing to a song with someone who adores it just as intensely as you do… all of it is amplified when there’s someone there to reflect it back.
What I’ve come to understand is that a friend turns moments into memories. Sure, you'll remember the concert—but now you’ll also be reminded of your friend’s tears of joy during the encore, or how you both danced like idiots and didn’t care. The joy isn’t just stored in your memory—it’s stored in theirs too, and that creates an unspoken bond between you.
There are beautiful moments in life. But with friends, it’s not just about the moment. There’s connection, there’s humor, and there are memories you’ll cherish forever. That’s where the real enchantment lies. Yes, traveling by yourself can be wonderful—but when you get to have a companion with you?
Always take it.
Hi, Lucas! Your blog post was very relevant to me this week, especially because I have recently been thinking about how friendship has influenced my memories. Even the most emotionally difficult times of my life have had some miniature joys because of humorous conversations with friends. In exactly a week from today, I will be traveling to New York to perform poetry, accompanied by my competitors who have soon become close friends with me. I will never forget the times we did vocal exercises like telling a story in gibberish and sounding out the funniest sounds every weekend to practice. Regardless of the result of the National Youth Poet Laureate competition, I know that visiting the Academy of American Poets as a guest with them by my side will make it memorable. Thank you for writing about this experience which is unexpectedly suitable for me at this time!
ReplyDeleteHi Lucas! I absolutely agree with you. I think that when you do activities with your friends they are more fun. Recently, i started a non profit club outside of school with a couple of my friends and working through paperwork and other boring tasks have not been so tedious thanks to them being there. Even celebrating successes in the club is more fun because we all know each other and can do whatever we want. This experience really made me think about what I want to do in the future, because if I could potentially work in an environment where I am surrounded by people I like, I might perform well. I relate to how you talked about energy. Energy is definitely something that can come most genuinely only from your close friends. Overall, your blog was very interesting and I look forward to reading your next one.
ReplyDeleteHi Lucas! I really enjoyed reading your blog post! Learning how to be content while being along can be so liberating and I enjoy spending one on one time with myself. I definitely agree that sharing these moments with people you love is so much more meaningful. I really liked what you said about happiness being stored in someone else's memory as well. The people that are always there for you and the memories you make with them can last a lifetime. Something as simple as laughing with your friends or singing a song together can end up being some of our most meaningful memories. Overall, it was great to read your blog post!
ReplyDeleteHey Lucas! I really enjoyed this blog that you wrote about how our friends can cause our memories to hold greater value to us in the long term. After reading your blog, I did a little bit of reflection and realized majority of my core memories are those that involve friends or family in them and there are barely any individual memories that have no social significance. If I take away the friends from any of those memories, there is a good chance that I would not store these as memories that I keep long term and hold significance to. I like how you said that the moment is not all that matters, but in fact the people that are there contribute more because of the connection that you can feel in hte moment. I enjoyed this blog Lucas!
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