Thoughts on community
Lately, the honey-bee keeps visiting me. Does this ever happen to you? Where a creature of the natural world consistently crosses your path, seemingly bringing you a larger message, attempting to catch your attention and telling you to THINK, BELIEVE, DO! A totem, if you will. I am well aware that the honey-bee is a symbol of “community,” this message is certainly not lost on me. In one tiny but significant creature I am reminded of the value of community, and how, with the shared ownership in participation, a collective group is capable of manifesting so much good.
I think of the world, and how, as of lately on a global level, we have communed with one another by sharing words and deeds of hope, healing, and strength. I pull my lens in tighter, and I can see community working within our country. Healthcare workers, grocery store clerks, teachers, municipal employees, the list goes on, all sharing ownership in the participation of making things safer, more comfortable, more accessible, at a time when things feel so strange and scary. An even tighter focus brings me to our dance community, where we share in movement; positive, graceful, thoughtful movement. Especially in these times, it is evident that the sum of our whole is so much greater than our parts. I can bring that focus in even tighter, and I see how the body works as a community. The arm, the back, the leg, the neck, the nose… they all count on one another to create the transition from this position to that. (I realized this in Pilates class this morning; with the concept of “community” on my mind, the epiphany of community within the body came bursting through!).
Although we may be fragile, we also have the ability to be mighty, especially as a community. Mother Nature has delivered quite a smack to us with this virus, but she has also knelt down and kissed us poignantly with the reminder that we are of nature, we commune like the bees. When you know that you are not alone in your efforts, when you understand that your contributions matter, when you realize that you’re a part of something greater, something that does not hold you down but lifts you up, then you are riding on the wings of community. Like the bees, we will make something sweet, that we can all benefit from. Let the love flow like honey!
THANK YOU so much, for being a part of my community. 😊