It always inspires me when I experience it.

While having a coffee chat recently, I was sitting with a pal and we were, obviously, solving all the issues surrounding us. As people entered the coffee shop, they would smile as they heard our amazingly intelligent talk. Every once in awhile, someone would actually join our scatter brained discussion, and the laughs multiplied. The ongoing humor was outstanding, and it dawned on me it was happening again. What was that “it?”

We were coming together.

Naturally, we knew some of the folks who would briefly join our conversation, but many were complete strangers. We were coming together through a bit of shared humor.

Another example of coming together was a recent wine tasting event. The event was promoted as a BYOB (Bring Your Own Bottle) wine tasting. The wines the attendees brought were totally mind blowing. The bottles ranged from a very expensive 1990 vintage champagne to a new Moscato. We tasted a very expensive cabernet sauvignon, a medium priced cabernet sauvignon and a highly rated Portuguese Red Blend wine. There was an Italian Prosecco presented to us, and a special red delicious wine produced in New Mexico. Such an amazing display!

As we talked, I wondered how the personality of the wine blended with the personality of the person offering the wine. There’s a whole lot there to consider, and wouldn’t it be fun to have that conversation? But, what impacted me the most was how the various wines brought us together. We shared past travels, music, family adventures and past tasting experiences. It was an awesome coming together time.

So, you may ask, why is it important to come together? For me, the simple answer is it’s what we have down forever. We find a common interest and it binds us together — time after time.

In today’s environment, we must find ways to come together as a family, community, state and nation. We may not agree on everything — just like folks didn’t always agree on what wine they liked the most at the before mentioned BYOB event. However, we talked, shared stories and laughed together. There were new relationships developed during our time together.

We must come together for the common good. That type of thread keeps family’s together even in the midst of disagreements. That commonness is needed to remind us that we are a country based on a very unique Constitution and the rule of law.

Along with the importance of the common good, we need to listen politely to each other. Again, just like we did at the wine tasting event and I did at the coffee chat with my less intelligent than me pal, I firmly believe that two very important elements of life are to share a smile and listen to the sounds around us. It’s so important to notice the little things in life — like a leaf on a tree (They’ll be back here in a few months!), a little bird and it’s song, a blossom, the sounds of laughter and the little nod of a stranger’s head to you as you walk by them.

Those little things — like a sip of wine or coffee — will enable us to come together.

May you always find a way to come together.