True Community

Extremists at both ends of the political continuum have more in common with each other than they do with the vast majority of people from their own constituencies.  What they share is leveraging any opportunity to discharge their denied and festering pain, hurt, and feelings of smallness or powerlessness.

                                                            Brene Brown,  Braving the Wilderness
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We live in a world

In a country of extremes

I know, sometimes I live there

On the end of the spectrum

But most of the time I live in the middle

Confused, angry, disconnected

And really, really sad

For in trying to celebrate collective values

And pain

And hope

We have ended up dehumanizing and objectifying each other

We have reached the place where our bonds with one another are counterfeit

Based on the fact that we hate the same people

This is an intense bond, it is gratifying

We are caught up in it

Just watch the faces behind Trump at a rally

Or think of our own delight when one of “them” is shamed and defeated

Hate is a fuel that burns fast, and “leaves a trail of polluted emotion” (BB)

We must learn to choose

Not the bond of hate

Not the bond of ridicule and shaming

But the bond of love

The bond of shared pain

The bond of shared hope

The bond of gathering on a Sunday morning and experiencing real community

Sharing real joys, and real hurts

The bond of being captured by something bigger than ourselves

Be it Harry Potter

Or the Seahawks

Or love

Especially love

We need real community

The community of hope

The community of love

You want false community

Go to a Trump rally

Or to many churches

You want real community

Go to a homeless shelter

To a family gathering

To a community potluck

To a fourth of July parade in a small town

To a concert

To a funeral

To a wedding

Community is to be found

And it, ultimately

Is what will save us