All of us NEED to feel conncected. We want to be part of a tribe. Need to feel like we belong. It usually starts with family and then trickles through every aspect of our lives. Some people are gifted at connecting and staying connected. For others, they desperately try to hold on to anyone they can, on any level possible, because they desperately crave that connection like oxygen. There is nothing like sitting next to your person laughing, chatting, crying and connecting.
We have so many tools now a days to keep us connected to everyone!! Facebook, cellphones, Instagram, Snapchat- you name it and everyone is a click away. Why do some people feel so lost and isolated then? Social media is NOT all bad. There is greatness in it. If used for good- it can change the world. Same holds true of the opposite. I do think that relying on Social Media for personal connection, which many of us have been guilty of, can leave you feeling alone and isolated!
After talking with a friend this week I started thinking about how no matter where we are in life we all just want to belong SOMEWHERE. We want a tribe that tells us that we are ok. A familiar face that smiles and affirms that we are in the right spot. A REAL live person that reaches out and touches your hand to show you that you matter. For many those personal connections can be fostered in places like church, sports, work or hobbies, but for some no matter where they go they feel lost and afraid. I want to make a difference in the lives of those people.
I can't stop thinking about this because I'm getting ready to embark on a serious journey of sorts. I'm going to a place that the only familiar faces will be my small tribe and I'm pretty ok with it. Digging deep within I realized that it doesn't matter the size of your tribe- it's that you have one. For me, there isn't comfort in numbers, there's warmth in deep, raw, unfiltered connection. The kind of connection that the person next to me can tell me that my muffin top really needs some work (unless you are my mom or sister.) I kid, what I need and what everyone else needs can't be too dissimilar. We all need TRUST in order to connect in a healthy way.
What I've found in my very unprofessional search is that for most people who struggle with connection is that they lack trust in one person-themselves. These are the people that wrestle with their internal struggles and can't seem to forgive themselves. They fail to see the beauty and greatness they were created to be. They don't know how they like their eggs- because they are always trying to be what someone else wants them to be. They try to forge relationships by drawing attention to themselves through sympathy or by pretending to be something they are not. (They may have never taken the time to get to know themselves.) If they only knew that if they were themselves, an absolutely imperfect perfect version of themselves (as we all are)-the people that truly loved them would relate to them in deeper ways than the surface settlers.
Life is about love and relationships. It doesn't matter what shoes you wear or how many times you've redecorated your house. Those things are temporary fillers. Life is about deep connection and loving people- no matter where they are at. Community looks differently to all people. It can be a table of 2 or two hundred. It doesn't really matter as long as the hearts involved are filled with trust and belonging.