I've been thinking about our origin story 2/12

Welcome to our second prompt friends! How did your first note go? Did you get your note into the mail? How did it feel? Did the words flow? Was it a struggle to get started? Did your friend get their note yet? Remember, it can feel strange - maybe hard, maybe vulnerable - to start something new. It’s okay if that is where you are today. I encourage you to just keep moving, just keep trying, keep writing; it will feel more natural the more you do it. Here we go - today’s prompt: I’ve been thinking about our origin story This is one of my favorite prompts. I love revisiting the very beginning of a friendship story. Thinking back on the moments before we knew what our friendship would be and mean. I think about this prompt in three different ways, maybe one will resonate for you and the story you are telling, or maybe you have something else (if you do, share please!). Literally telling the story of meeting each other. Honestly, this is simple and sweet and usually contains more than originally meets the eye. What is your meet-cute? Where did you first encounter each other? Was it friends at first sight or was it a less than perfect first encounter? Did you meet in school or were you introduced by a mutual friend? Was it planned or fate filled? What did you say to each other? What did it feel like? Was there any inclination that this was special or was it so absurd to think that a small encounter was built into such a meaningful relationship? I love looking back on how I met my friends - one was a work introduction, one was a yoga class encounter, or meeting my husband on the field after his soccer game when he was the only one left and my ride (eh, mom) didn’t show. How serendipitous that these run of the mill, everyday encounters ended up changing our lives. When did your relationship become what it is? This can be a better question to ask if you are talking about someone who has been in your life since before you can remember (like a sibling), if you can’t remember your first encounter with your friend, or if you had a transformation in your relationship. Typically when we first meet people they are acquaintances before we build a friendship. What did that build look like for you? When you look back, what was the moment that you felt this person had become someone special? When did you move past the “enjoying each other’s company” stage and into the “this is something special” realization? Tell that story. And finally, maybe you aren’t sure. Maybe you need to ask this question to your friend. I especially like this one for family members (like parents). But it works too if you just aren’t sure how you got here or if you want to focus on feelings instead of actual events. I might use something like, I don’t know how it happened, but when I think of you I feel safe. When I need support, I know you are there. When I want to laugh, I want to laugh with you. When did my brain and body know you were the one to share the highs and lows with? When did we become us? Did it happen all at once or did our love, joy, and tenderness for each other teach us to be this way? To seek each other out when we needed or could share love? Broken record, but there are no rules. Go wherever the prompt takes you. Maybe today it is literal and a few months from now you use the exact same prompt for the exact same person and take it in a totally different direction. Being a complex human lets us have all the fun 😘 ♥️ Danielle