No, this is not going to be another one of those New Year's resolution posts. There are plenty of people who do that. John Beckett did a good one, Why Do People Break New Year’s Resolutions? | John Beckett (patheos.com).
This is going to be one of those, I’ve seen that movie and don’t want to watch it again, posts. As I have spent time reflecting on this past year, one thing has stood out above all others to me.
Community.
We need it. It is necessary. And I, myself, am going to invest more in building it. As I can.
What does this have to do with my Work? Well, Everything. I offer exhibit A, The Mission Statement of Raven’s Keep Forge: ‘The mission of Raven’s Keep Forge is co-creating sacred metal ‘Forge Bling’ for the community, and empowering others to reawaken their connection to the magic of metal.’ See, It’s embedded right there - community
In the days of yore, (I will always look for a way to say that for some reason), the smithy was the center of any community. Just about everything went through the smithy. I mean really, can you think of a craft that the blacksmith didn’t touch? Cook, carpenter, thatcher, cobbler, stone mason, farmer, etc. Can you? Go ahead, I'll wait.
Now what follows is just one person's observation, opinion if you prefer. And being a person that was heavily involved in the pagan community back in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, I have no desire to see history repeat itself. At all. Whatsoever.
I am not going to spend time on the past. Jason Mankey wrote some about it here a few years ago, The First Witch Wars & Why It’s Different Today | Jason Mankey (patheos.com). I want to focus on the present and the future.
I’ve been involved in several different communities over the last few years. Most of them in my view, seem to operate in a silo. Some of them have even become bullyish. Which is totally sexy btw! Ugh. It’s like there is so much more focus on what we don’t have in common than what we do. Or on being ‘right’. Whatever that really means. Right for who? Exhibit B (man that got the Perry Mason feels all over it huh?)
Over the years I have noticed that ‘right’ seems to change. Does anyone remember when doctors used to think that smoking was good for you? Or even the oldy but goodie, the earth being flat? Loony right? And what about the food pyramid from days long ago?
When I was little and going to church (being a good Southern Baptist and all), I remember hearing a tale of a church splitting over a painting of Adam. You see, the artist painted him with a belly button. The focus within the church became so much on whether or not he had a belly button (being the first person and all) that they actually had to go their separate ways. Seems silly. Until it’s not.
So, for me, I am going to spend this year looking for what we have in common. And less time worrying about being ‘right’. A friend of mine calls it drawing the larger circle. He takes that from this poem here:
Even amongst our differences, what can we accomplish together? What are the commonalities that we can find? How can we work together? What bonds can we forge? (you know I had too, right?) What can we agree on?
During my time getting certified with Jack Canfield, he talks about an equation that has stuck with me since then. He says 1+1 = 3. As I remember it, there is you, plus me, and the thing that we are together. The thing that is uniquely us.
So, with that said, I am going to commit to working on our uniqueness as a community. Focus on the things that we have in common. The ways we can grow together and be less divisive. How can we foster meaningful relationships? What are the overlaps in our beliefs? The intersections and parallels?
I am not naive. I don’t expect kumbaya, rainbows and unicorns. Relationships are messy. And the good ones are worth working on. I really don't know how big, if any, impact I will have. And like in the story about the starfish, maybe I can at least make a difference to that one.
My community is important. Y’all are important. And we can be so much more together than we can separated, in silos.
And since I been overdosing on all the holiday movies, I am going to leave you this one last thought from the movie Love Actually:
"When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge—they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love, actually, is all around." — Prime Minister
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