I guess I collect people.

Looking through my Facebook newsfeed just now I was realizing how much I care about people I haven't seen in a long time who I don't know very well. I have a hard time going through and deleting old connections, not because I need to feel liked with the assurance of many "friends" but because I genuinely enjoy and care about people. I like seeing news from time to time, good and bad, and celebrating and mourning with old connections from afar. Those summers I worked at camp? I still crave updates from the people I worked with, even though through those summers we mostly knew each other by alternate names. They were a part of my growing into who I am now - each major parts of learning about life and how to live it, well. I know people who think it's crazy to have 200 friends, and I know people who have a couple thousand. At about 750 friends, I know that I don't keep up with everyone on my list. Some of them I barely remember how we connected in the first place. But then there are the treasures of people that I may have only known for a few months before they were out of my life again, but who have impacted my life forever.

I guess I collect people: their stories, smiles, sorrows, laughter, and love it when they let me enjoy those with them.