Striving to be kindred

I read an article about one of my favorite musicians who called another one of my favorite musicians a ‘kindred soul.’ And it felt like two of my friends who had never met before but were destined to get along finally crossed paths and blossomed a whole new world together. Something about the way a person calls someone else ‘kindred’ brings comfort to me, as if there is no better word one could use if they wanted someone to think the best of that person. There is no better kind of person to surround yourself with than the kindred kind. Someone who reminds you there is genuine good not only in this world, but close to you.

As I sat in my isolated room the afternoon I read the article — feeling overworked from the constant need to advance in my career which is currently relatively stagnant — the thought crossed my mind that I have not sought to be kindred in a very long time. A friend said to me a few months ago that their career will always be a way to make money and nothing else, that expressing joy for doing something or being with someone will come from things not related to work. And I think to myself about the times I’ve measured my potential success from the positions in life I seek to be in rather than the people I seek to surround myself with.

What surrounding yourself with kindred folk means is that you seek the feelings that most people only notice: a contagious laugh that turns heads, a hug that you walk extra fast for because you can’t wait to embrace someone, a smile at your phone when you see someone specific’s notification. The importance of seeking such a sensation for me is that it means I still have hope for the rest of my life even in its depths. It is at nobody’s expense that I seek to be kindred and seek people who are kindred. It is simply the way I can find the joy nearby that is left to spare.