An Instant, A Season, A Lifetime

I often would say that people are in one's life for an instant, a season, or a lifetime. Those "instant" people are ones we sit next to on airplanes, have as a waitress or waiter while eating out, chat with in a doctor's office, or run next to in a marathon race. Those "season" people are ones with whom we sit next to in class, the person we met on a summer vacation, workers we met during an internship, or "seasonal" friends who lead transient lives.

But those who are considered in one's life for a "lifetime" are the ones who make contact no matter how busy life becomes for him or her. They are there because they care unconditionally. They listen to problems no matter how late at night one calls; They offer perspective and reason unibiasly; they take time to make certain one is okay; They never waver in their support. They want nothing in return except for a lifelong friendship and they show that by making one feel as though he or she is an important part of their lives for always.

Sometimes people do not realize that their "I'm too busy" attitude turns a lifetime into a season which disappears in an instant.