A Sense of Community
Original Publication 01/08/20
Here we are again, that most valued day of the week that I collect my various musings and cathartically compile them into something I deem worthy of entertaining and intriguing you all. This week, I've been delving into thoughts on "community" and its role in modern society.
Following on from a mention in a previous piece of mine (see Dreams and Burdens for more musings), I have begun reading The Art of Happiness in a Troubled World by His Holiness The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, a book recommended to me by my grandmother, Ingrid. Last week I curiously, and with eagerness, delved into its contents. What I found inside has humbled and fascinated me. It's shone a light onto a great many questions that have often been bouncing around in my subconscious, but only now have I begun to see and explore them clearly. It's a peculiar feeling, to read a passage of thought and feel it's something you've know all along but never could quite put into practice.
There's a riveting passage towards the beginning of the book that discusses "the spirit of community." Cutler and The Dalai Lama discuss the lack of a sense of community in Western society and its increased significance over the last twenty to thirty years. The Dalai Lama asserts that "Tibetans are always shocked to hear of situations where people are living in close proximity, have neighbours, and they may have been your neighbours for months or even years, but you have hardly any contact with them! So you might simply greet them when you meet, but otherwise, you don't know them. There is no real connection. There is no sense of community." Ask yourself now as you read this, how many of you know your neighbours? I can't claim that I do, really.
While this statement is one that raises some unfortunate truths, the effects of our still relevant pandemic have reiterated to us the significance of community. During the lockdown, we have been almost forcibly coerced into evaluating a great many things. Ourselves, our relationships, our general way of life, the list goes on and on. That sense of community, or lack thereof, has fallen very much under the microscope over the last few months. It's the tired old cliche that "you don't know what you have until it's gone", but it's certainly applicable to our current state of affairs.
The Dalai Lama argues that it all comes down to awareness. "In the first place, you need to have awareness of the seriousness of the problem itself, how destructive it can be. Then, you need greater awareness of the ways that we are connected with others, reflecting on the characteristics we share with others. And finally, you need to translate that awareness into action."
I could say with relative certainty that I have been most aware of the significant importance of my personal sense of community during my time as a student in Falmouth, Cornwall. I had a very close and eclectic group of friends, many of whom were involved in events all over the town and the surrounding county. It was only when I graduated that the absence of such a community really hit home for me. My partner will attest that she felt a profound sense of community during her time in Noosa, Queensland. My brother is fortunate enough to have found his sense of community in our hometown, within his tight-knit friend group and his local business. Most of us can define at least one time that we felt a similarly influential sense of community.
The sudden halt of a free-flowing and social society that has been a near-constant factor in many of our daily lives has hindered us immeasurably. Even now, as we begin to move towards our familiar habits and schedules, the dire effects of loneliness are clear. Our loved ones, and those chosen few individuals with whom we chose to isolate, have become our emotional anchors. The benefits of community involvement have been made starkly apparent to us. As Cutler states, "the physical, mental, and emotional benefits of intimate relationships and social ties are legion."
But, what is now paramount is the need to "translate that awareness into action." I have spent years believing that I don't belong in my hometown, I'm not wrong per se (I've felt for a long time that my future lies elsewhere), but I am now aware of the need for my own personal involvement in achieving a greater sense of community here. Like many of us, I am fortunate enough to have great friends in the town I call home. I have a devoted partner, as well as a loving family. It now seems clear, after months of reflection and my exploration into this scintillating and eye-opening book, that is very much down to my own doing whether I will feel that sense of profound community once more. I implore myself, as much as all of you, to heed the lessons of lockdown, and forge those relationships for yourself. Trust me, you'll feel all the better for it.