I've been thinking a lot about community in the past day or two
and what that over-used buzz word really means. What do my
immediate surroundings require of me? How can I best impact
my immediate surroundings with both positive and creative
force? I'll put that on hold for a minute.
The above picture is an overhead shot of The Glebe area
in Ottawa (which is where I spend 20 hours a week and also
a few minutes walk from where I live in Centretown). It is
a special area for me as it is where I spent many hours, evenings
and weekends growing up as my Grandma Betty and Grandpa
D.F. inhabited a house in the Glebe. When I was younger, I
always saw it as a bit of a safehaven - a refuge. Growing older,
though, I saw that the area seemed to be filled with more of a
prosperity vibe and was mainly inhabited by younger couples
with young children, doctors, lawyers and general upper-class
types. Does that mean this area is a write-off because there
are very few homeless people around? Definitely not.
I've been sort of smuggled into different wavelengths of a
Christ-based belief system that is largely based on
a few key elements:
a. the importance of growing together with others
b. making an impact where you live and not in some foreign,
sunny country that I know little about
c. showing Jesus to others in the way that I act as opposed
to the way that I talk (due to the meaningless nature of
words)
d. being supportive and receptive to others, no matter
what they believe or understand and walking alongside
of others in life.
This new blog represents something I've been passionate
about and involved within for a while, now. Somedays,
I love it. Other days, it annoys me and I wish it could be
different. Most of the time, I think it's going somewhere
but I don't know where. I think in order to really 'do'
community, everyone involved has a massive requirement
to grow up and get beyond their general beefs and shit
with certain people. Community often starts organically
but then turns into 'Oh - I don't want to be there if THIS
person is there' and so on. Our childish and territorial
human minds lead us from where we should be. Maybe
we have too many choices as North Americans and the
choices overwhelm us - whereas, in remote villages of the
Amazon, you live, sleep, eat and die with your
community. That's just the way it is.
A community can look like a lot of things and can be many
different shapes and colours. One thing that I don't think
it can be, however, is half-assed. Community needs
commitment in order to go anywhere. It lives and dies
in the ability of those within the community to say 'I am
going to make this work. I am going to step in the bucket
and make a choice to really try this out for a designated
period of time'.
I just want to make the most of whatever time I have
on this giant ball of mud, grass, snow and water.
