About 6-7 years ago, I had a couple of close friends, but they got married and I did not. I’ve invited them to various events, but they have children now and usually decline.
I’ve been attending a monthly men’s dinner organized through my church. The most recent occurrence, I almost missed because apparently the organization of the event transitioned from email to WhatsApp. I don’t have a WhatsApp account. There was no email about the move to WhatsApp. One person just happened to realize I hadn’t gotten the details and called to invite me. I was grateful somebody remembered me (at the last minute), but for weeks leading up, I kept wondering if it just wasn’t happening for March or if I were no longer welcome. I guess being an afterthought is better than being no thought at all.
They remembered you and went to the effort to call. I’d try to look on the bright side of that one.
Beyond making a point to reach out to others, men must also be careful to not hyperfocus their lives on work, Carpenter says, “which is easy for them to do.”
Ooof, touché …
The article seems to just focusing on men to men connections / men only spaces, which might be super valuable but are not the only way to feel less isolated. I think men can also befriend women and non binary folks. I really want to see men participating in mixed gendered spaces in an open and caring way.
