No world-changing revelations tonight–just some small talk with strangers at a pizza joint.

My middle child had a field trip today–they didn’t get back until around 6:30. After I picked him up, I decided to take the kids out to a local pizza place. My wife is out of town, so it was just the four of us.

At the pizza place, my son recognized a couple of his classmates, who were also waiting to be seated. Apparently some other families had the same idea. He went over to talk to his friends, and I made eye contact with the parents, smiled, and gave them a nod hello.

Then I walked over and introduced myself.

I can’t say I’m a big fan of small talk with strangers, but it struck me that at this particular moment, that was exactly what I needed to do. Not for me, necessarily, but for my son. He was starting to build his own friendships and his own community, and it was my job to make that as easy for him to do as possible.

No, it wasn’t painful, and yes the conversation was about as mundane as you would expect. At the same time, it felt good to be doing just that in our new home town–talking with strangers, and watching us all transform into something else–maybe just acquaintances, sure, but something that connected us as a community.