Does your community have holiday traditions? Parades, concerts, tree lighting. What “starts” the holiday for you? What marks the beginning? Do you miss traditions from the community you grew up in or are you grateful for the community you live in now?
For me, I honestly can’t really say that I remember participating in holiday community traditions. I always thought it would be neat to grow up in a community that had a big tree lighting or the perfect hot cocoa scene I see in every Hallmark movie.
Instead today, I want to share about just “community” in general and how important it is to me.
Community is for sure something you don’t appreciate until you don’t have it. Maybe an “absence makes the heart grow fonder moment”.
After experiencing great community in my life, I find that in this new journey community is something I crave. It takes time to discover, create and develop.
I’m not just talking about the small town group of people that just know everything about each other to the point that it seems nosey. Or the random people you pass daily in the local Wal-mart or knowing the name of the person who changes your oil.
Community to me is sharing life together. Doing life together. Whether that’s a group of people at church, the families on your street or your co-workers, its the people who know you better than yourself. The people who you can’t hide from because they know how to read your emotions. The people who can talk to you on the phone and know if you are having a good or bad day. The people that know the rest of the story by reading a 140 character update. Its the people who know that I’m tearing up writing this and can picture the smirk knowing who I had to make that comment for!
Right before I left Ouachita, I read a quote on pinterest – Family is not always the people you are born to, sometimes its the people you choose to surround yourself with. – THAT’S COMMUNITY.
If you find yourself in the midst of community..enjoy it. Share it, create moments to continue to experience it, take advantage of every opportunity.
Love deeply. Share corporately. Experience freely. Be Yourself. Give fully.
Community is what you make of it and give to it. Invest beyond yourself.
Be grateful for progressive dinners, lunch dates, candle lighting, and sing-a-longs you wont soon forget the faces that surround you in those moments.
Happy Advent,
