By Cynthia Langill, Addictions Counsellor & Registered Psychotherapist

When thinking of a connection with others my mind quickly leaped to a mighty winding river, comprised of water droplets melded into one magical racing force of nature.

Without each tiny molecule comprised of oxygen and hydrogen there would be no river. Each drop fluid in its journey joins to others on the same path of uncertainty. 

For a time they run together, sometimes easing around a bend in their road and sometimes drifting seemingly aimlessly, as if it did not matter what lay ahead.

And sometimes, they bounce against a large deterrent  such as a log, a long forgotten branch, no longer vital to the tree it was once part of, or a rock face that stands although eroded by countless droplets before this time.

Then, jarred by mother nature herself, a droplet is forced away and finds another connection, another group of droplets to join with. And so the journey continues and the river picks up momentum, moving quickly toward an ultimate end.

And I am but a droplet on this journey of life. I have made hundreds of connections along the way, quite possibly thousands. It is impossible to count.

I know I have forgotten more than I could ever remember, my brain, limited as it is in memory sets out those I am to never forget. 

And I am well aware it is a blessing bestowed upon me those connections that will remain blacked out in the gray matter, gone forever.

And so as if a droplet in a river, I continue. Connecting to those I am meant to learn and grow from, getting stronger with each passing one. 

But now I have come to realize, that like every river that flows I am racing toward something wonderful, there is no ending afterall.