The Power of Delight

We spend so much time trying to "acquire" people and things.
In business, we talk about "acquiring a customer," like they're a commodity we're buying at the corner store and we even associate a price with each new person.
In our personal lives, we often do the same, thinking about the effort it takes to find and start a relationship with a new friend, lover or partner, yet it feels wrong to call that friend or lover or partner an "acquisition," so we come up with gentler words to remind ourselves no human actually gets to acquire or possess another human.
We use that word, acquisition, by the way, because it deludes us into believing "once we've got it, it's ours for life." Hahaha! So, silly!
We all know, that's not even close to reality. We don't own anyone. Not for life, not for a year, a month, an hour or a moment. We are gifted with their presence, their investment of love and energy and time and more. And that gift is something that must be nurtured, grown, tended over time or else it goes away, and so do they.
We have an opportunity to continue to invest in not only the process of discovery, but the continuing process of deepening and delight. Delight, in fact, is where the greatest magic happens and it's all too often completely ignored once you're past the courting stages.
What if, instead of focusing maniacally on finding and starting relationships, then letting them coast into oblivion, we spent equal if not more energy on delighting those we bring into our orbit once they're here.
That's what we're talking about on this week's short and sweet GLP Riff.