I've had The Beatles song Come Together in my head for the last couple of days as I thought about writing this post. Remember that one? It's a classic. Unfortunately, we—and particularly young people—are coming together far less often than we used to.

Data point of the week
Every age group spends significantly less in-person time with friends than we did two decades ago. Friend time has especially plummeted for 15-24 year olds, who spend less than 1/3 of the time with friends than their counterparts did 20 years ago. Check this out:

Reflection
Yes texting, group chats, and social media can help us stay in touch with our friends. But nothing can replace the physical and mental health benefits of in person connection. We need it.

I get it, sometimes it feels effortful. Coming together can be easier when you set up automatic recurring connections to take some of the burden out of planning and scheduling. And if you're looking for inspiration about what to do when you come together, keep reading.

Connection Skill & Action Step: Come together. 3 ideas for gathering with friends.

1. Host a potluck and invite guests to bring their favorite childhood snack! This one came from the FREE download, Recipes for Connection, that the U.S. Surgeon General just released … and there are lots of other ideas in there too. I'm going to give it a try. If my favorite childhood treats are anything to go by, this is sure to be a sweeeeeet event! (A DQ banana split comes to mind, chosen solely based on the volume of ice cream … the banana was incidental). On top of sharing snacks/treats, you can reminisce about the childhood memories associated with them.

2. Hold a Conversation Buffet using the MENU of conversation prompts I shared a couple weeks ago. Get together with a friend, or a small group (up to 6), and choose your own conversational adventure from the prompts provided.

3. Invite a friend to do something you’re going to do anyway. This may sound boring, but it's great if you’re short on time or don't want to put the effort into cleaning, planning, hosting, etc. For example, you could invite a friend on your daily dog walk, do a “chore swap,” such as helping each other with yard clean up, or even go grocery shopping together. I'm thinking about taking a dance class this winter … maybe I'll invite a few friends to join with me to make it a social time as well!

Questions to reflect on or to spark conversation. Please share your responses in the comments—we love hearing from you!

What was your favorite childhood snack or treat?

Have you had an especially great gathering that others could replicate? If so, please share the instructions.