Connection isn’t just a buzz word.

I’ve realised lately that I need more of it, and not the online kind. So I’ve been thinking about how I can connect with people in a meaningful and enriching way – starting with my existing friendships.

For me, this means actually being in the presence of a friend, seeing them, hugging them, and having real conversations that don’t involve emojis or ‘lol’ or quick ‘how are you?’s in the comments section that inevitably elicit surface responses and often leave us still feeling lonely and isolated.

We were never meant to do life alone. We were always meant to live in community. And that doesn’t mean on a screen. We need to put down our phones, and be with people in person. Only then can we really see and hear one another. Only then, if we’re willing and brave, can we start to understand one another. 

On a larger scale, building strong grassroots communities is one of the only ways we can start to stand up to the hatred, discrimination, and efforts to divide and conquer (and silence) that are getting louder and stronger around the world.

For the majority of us, it’s not by making grand gestures on a global stage. It’s by simple acts of openness, e.g. reaching out to our neighbour, who may have different political or religious affiliations or cultural background, and seeking out common ground.

It’s about small gestures that build and build and build, until we have a community-based foundation of commonality and understanding that can withstand the strikes when they come.

So start small. Phone a friend. Have coffee. Then maybe … join a yoga group. Start a book club. Join an oodle meet-up group (ummmm that would be me, see below). Reach out. Talk. Listen. 

Now more than ever, community matters.