What is Community?Chuck and I were at the local grocery store this morning and we ran into a lady we know. Her husband recently passed away and she was happy to have kind folks to chat with about random things. It was a joyful encounter. Then later, when I was making some lunch for Ev, this thought popped into my head: “Bumping into the wife of the political opponent you beat and having a really nice, heartfelt conversation - that’s community.” That got me wondering how folks define community for themselves. We hear it get thrown around all the time. It can mean different things. But I thought I’d share with you a few things that feel like community to me. So here we go… Community is: Being at the grocery store and seeing a dear friend that brings joy to your heart just by seeing her, then talking with another acquaintance for 10 minutes and rounding out the trip by seeing your dad at the end and talking with him for a spell. Having a group of people who show up week after week after week to let you teach them Pilates (and maybe a little something about living a life well-lived too.) [Shameless plug: Join us!] Doing a grocery run for your sick mom so that she doesn’t have to go out and spread the germs to others. Showing up to City Council meetings and seeing some of the same faces and appreciating their dedication to staying informed about what decisions are being made for their community. Having a bonfire at an amazing place with friends and acquaintances, collecting funds and personal care items for our neighbors in need in Niles, while watching your amazing son perform his greatest hits on stage! Walking in the morning and running into a neighbor who is out walking his dogs, stopping to pet the pooches and exchange pleasantries between humans. Having dear friends who live as far away as Texas, Virginia, California, United Kingdom, and Australia who, thanks to technology, feel like they are right there with you on your regular Zoom calls. Having friends, family and clients reach out to check on you when you’ve had surgery or when you’re sick or when the power lines explode outside of your house for several minutes (crazy thing that happened last week!). Knowing they will drop what they’re doing to get you what you need to feel better.
There’s countless other examples I could give, but you get my drift here, right? What this little exercise has done for me is help me get back in touch with some hope. Sometimes when I think of community, it feels too big. Like how can I make an impact on my community? What does that even look like if I’m thinking of the whole City or County or Country or Planet? Too big. But when I look at all the little interactions that weave us all together, it all feels manageable. A smile. A shoulder to cry on. A cheerleader. A mentor. A person who cares makes a big difference. And as you know, I care a lot! Moving on. Here are some things that have been happening since last we connected via this newsletter: I’m walking again! No crutches and I’m even going for longer walks outside again. (Healing from my foot surgery on February 13.) Chuck had sinus and septum surgery about a week ago and is healing well. Ev and I got a cold last week. Knowing that we had to protect Chuck from getting this cold while healing from sinus surgery, we were in quarantine all last week. (In separate rooms. It got lonely at times.) Henry has been learning some new songs for upcoming gigs this Spring. If you find yourself in the lovely City of Niles, MI on April 25 at 3:30 pm, come downtown to the NODE to see him delivering joy to the masses. I don’t know if you noticed, but governments all over the world are out of control and engaging in hate, division and war. Do your part: Give hate no power. Practice nonviolent protest. Build your local community up and take care of each other. We’ll have a lot of rebuilding to do on the other side of all this.
That’s all for now. Hope you are doing well and keeping yourself healthy. Look for the light. It always helps me. Love you, Jess
|
