“Nothing says ‘I love you’ more than devoting time for one another!”
So true, so true. If you want strong relationships (and nobody wants to live a completely solitary existence) you’ve got to invest time and effort into them. They don’t just happen.
This is true in all relationships: family, marriage, siblings, extended family, friends, work…
Even in your relationship w God!
As for me, this also includes my followers.
If someone is willing to invest their time in me, I try to reciprocate and invest time into a relationship with them as well. The more they invest in me, I try to give as much or more back. At least as much as I can. That’s why I try to leave a string of comments and likes for those I follow, and it’s why I check out the blogs of every one of my new followers.
This is also why I try not to follow too many. I only follow those that are the most impacting in my life, and those that invest the most into me. It’s important to not stretch ourselves too thin in our relationships. Decide which relationships are most important and decide how much time to devote to each. Some relationships should be deeper than others.
The depth of the relationship is directly proportionate to the amount of time spent cultivating it.
So, if there is ever anything I can do for one of you my followers, please don’t hesitate to let me know. Let me know how I can spell out my love and gratitide by giving you back some “love-time”.
I T-I-M-E you guys!
————————————————
James Clark -- The Next Iteration 
Thanks for starting out with my quote. I’m glad my post today inspired you to think deeper on the subject!
I appreciate your time and your friendship. You invest your time in me and it motivates me every day! Thank you!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Ditto.
(Such a cool word. I’m thinking about using it as the name for my next dog! 😀)
LikeLiked by 1 person
ha. That’d be awesome! Or, Lacy 😉 hehe
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll remember that if it’s a girl! 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’d be surprised how many times I hear, “I had a dog named Lacy!” Seems it was a more popular dog name than girl name 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Agreed with what you’re saying here. Especially at this time in my life, relationships Must be reciprocal. Or I distance myself from the person. I don’t ‘follow’ a string of people here – only those who involve themselves in regular discourse via comment threads. And that doesn’t need to be with every post! Life happens. 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad I’m one of them — I enjoy the time we spend in our discussions. And I appreciate knowing you understand when I don’t have the time to invest into a decent comment.
Thank you for being such a great WordPress friend.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I ‘do’ understand! Gosh, we all get distracted. Thanks for your kind comments and for really thinking about what I write. It means a lot. And you are welcome 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great article. Thanks for visiting my blog.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, and you’re quite welcome. I’m looking forward to reading more of your great reminders to me of ways to strengthen my marrriage.
LikeLike
😃I’m glad they help.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Time is the hardest gift to give. My dad called me on this recently. Now I’m trying harder.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a profound observation, Jeff. Thank you for an excellent addition to the discussion.
LikeLike
Excellent point James. I have had to revise my follows. The time spent in reading other blogs was overwhelming and leaving little time for my writing.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me too. And I keep doing it on a continual basis.
But it’s so hard to choose! If I chose to follow a blog in the first place, it means there was something about their writing that I appreciated, so It pains me every time I have to choose one to un-follow.
I wish I was a Time Wizard. Then I could have all the time I needed to follow everyone that I apprecaited.
But alas, I am only human. I am one of those of the race of beings that must make hard choices in order to survive.
I feel honored that I am still making your list of blogs to follow. Thank you. From the bottom of my timepiece.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My pleasure, and thank you for keeping me on your list! I have found that often a post that caused me to follow someone was very good, but then posts that followed were not appealing to me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My experience, also. In fact, I’ve started a practice of reading several posts before deciding to “Follow”. I read 2 or 3 of their recent posts (giving a “Like” as merited), and 2 or 3 of their “Top Posts” (if they have that widget active).
I also encourage bloggers to include a link at the end of all their posts to a short list of what they consider to be their best work. (See my “Blog Your Own Best” post.)
Reading what they consider ther best work allows them to share well-written older posts that “Top Posts” may have missed due to the mathematics of an ever-increasing following. I also find that reading the pieces they feel the most proud of and passionate about helps me get to know them better personally so I can make a better decision on whether they are someone I would like to invest my time in following or not.
Thank you for the time you’ve invested in reading my work and commenting on it! I appreciate you!
https://jamesclarkthenextiteration.wordpress.com/2017/07/10/byob-blog-your-own-best/
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good points James, it’s true that investing time in the few rather than the many makes for more meaningful relationships.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for investing your time in me. I felt honored reading this post as my site was one of the chosen ones. I so agree with you. I’d rather have few followers who read and comment on my posts than a large number of followers who don’t bother to read.Thank you again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s my pleasure. I wish I had even more time to devote to reading the blogs of others, AND more time to read yours more often. 🙂
Happy blogging!
LikeLike