A Chance?

Not odd, not cold nor warm - it is sinking in and I am considering dating. I am finally noticing the good all around me, these mountains, trees, wildlife, valley's, rock formations. There is no one special and have few options but the thought of getting back out there is surfacing. My life has become somewhat sterile, by my own choice. I have until recently closed myself off from the smiles or swift glances of others. The opportunities I have for personal contacts are slim and the few are not mere chance. It is finally nice to consider *others*, drawing to myself an experience and a new acquaintance - something that may lend meaning to life. It's not a fear of others - nor personal inadequacy that I hesitate. I realize that I am failing to gain the growth by another's presence - strangers in my life are not without purpose. I will meet someone whose growth, as well as my own, is dependent on the removal of the barriers separating us. I'm almost ready, I am so ready for new friends - - -"Fear makes strangers of people who should be friends"  Shirley McLaine