A sense of Belonging

We all desire and want to feel like we belong where ever we find ourselves. The first time you show up to a new place we often ask the question, ‘will they like me? Will I like it? Will I be able to fit in?’ No one wants to be the ‘black sheep’ even though sometimes, it feels like we are. We crave to be accepted by the ones whom we deem worthy to grant it to us.

When we do belong to a community, there is a sense of safety and security. No matter how hard the winds of life may blow, my people will always be there for me.

Is this when we ask them or ourselves ‘what would I do without you’? Ignoring the fact that at some point in your life, you have lived without them, but now they add so much value to your life, you cannot imagine life without them.

But what is a community? Oxford dictionary defines it as “a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristics in common” or “a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.” I like the second definition a lot better because, most of the people that I consider to be part of my community do not live in the same place as me. There are some people who through bloodlines, automatically become part of your community. They are the ones you share facial similarities with. People often times confuses you for the other or vice versa. Then there are people who walk into your life, and for a brief moment they become a part of your community. Those brief moments often leave a mark of a lifetime. Then there are people who walk into your life, and they are there to stay. The expression ‘friends that become family’ is often the way they are described. Finally, there are people who you do not know, but when trouble knocks at your door they become a visible part of your community. They didn’t just arrive, they’ve been there the entire time but you just never really crossed parts with them so closely. I often see this in our church. We are all brothers and sisters of the same faith, but there is a lot of us,but we stand in assurance that our fellow members will be there for us. ‘The church our refuge’ with Christ as the foundation.

But as much as a community can be a source of comfort, it can also be the source of pain. Sometimes, we try so hard to belong that we lose ourselves in the process. Sometimes, the community itself betrays us in ways that we least expected. But what is life, without her ways of teaching us how to fall and get back on our feet. For some, their community becomes a sword that pierces deep into their hearts but at the same time, it is the balm that heals their soul.

We all long to belong somewhere, and I hope that your community will always be a source of hope and comfort to you. And even when it is not, I hope that another community will rise up, and lift you up and place your feet on the steady ground of Mother Earth.

See You Later, Abigael