People I Like

Recently I was having a conversation about people with someone ... usually we have common views and opinions about stuff and people. She is a great listener and always laughs at my sarcasm which tells me she gets me. So during this one specific conversation when I mentioned (again) how I don't like people, she sincerely asked me, " ... but you must like some people?" To which I responded, "Of course! I like my friends and family ... most of the time. Ha!" ... and then went on to elaborate and share who and what kinda-people I like. At that exact moment I decided this makes for a blog post. Hence, here we are ... I realize that by the virtue of duration of time and childhood bonding I like most of my friends, and some of my family. However, if I am being 100% honest (which I am always being) had I met some of them in my life today, I would probably not like them as much. While I believe people come into your life for a reason and not all of them ... in fact most of them ... are not meant to last a life time. They come, we interact, change and grow together and then go our own ways to pursue our own paths. Few people stick around. Sometimes because they won't let you go, and other times because you won't let them go and a few times because your paths will continue to cross with each other's. Those are the relationships that add spice to life and brings joy and sometimes frustration. Fast forward to the current-cynical-me - I really don't like most people. The more accurate statement would be that I like most people for small increments of time. But then the later does not have the same effect. Ha!
I like people who want to talk about ideas versus people. I like people who exude confidence with warmth and compassion. I like people who value time and manners and are fair in their perspective. I like people who have the maturity to listen and express opposing views without attacking or offending. I like people who support each other. I like people who are kind, brave, honest and grateful. Everyone is at their best behavior for a short period of time but if you spend more than 24 hours with them, their guard starts to go down and their nuances starts getting highlighted. And with time I have zero tolerance for drama, whining, unnecessary gossip, superficial talk, poor hygiene, ill-mannered behavior, even a hint of sexist or racist talk. One would think that it is not such a harsh criteria but I am surprised that most people have more than one of the mentioned characteristics. And there is no way that I would like interact with these people. I'd rather spend my whole life with books. N.B. With this post dI do not not mean to imply that I have all of the mentioned qualities. This is the person I hope to become one day. I am work in progress. And I like people who too are working on themselves instead of believing that they have it all figured out. Tanvi Kedia Anthropologie Tanvii.com
Photography via CE Photography