The word community was one of the words in the English language that took me the longest to understand. The way I understood it in my first language had to do with how one might describe one’s relationship to other people or a group of people, but that the concept could be a physical group of people was something I did not understand. 

I was quite ill last week which forced me to take a pause from the go-go-go of everyday, and spend my time setting up so that my body could recover. While it was not good fun being sick, resting was a great reset in making me consider what I am putting my energy into. So, it helped me to become more aware of and then shift my priorities. 

Returning to “the real world” this week, I became aware of various communities that I have been skirting the borders of. It being the second week of classes, I am not worried that I do not find myself entirely ingrained in any of these communities—relationships take time and that is time I am looking forward to spending getting to know people better. However, I think I have most often reflected on communities only once I am in them, so reflecting on the various potential communities I may later become a part of is an interesting experience. 

Yesterday, I heard someone compare community with family. It led me to look at the definition of community, which most dictionaries agree is a group of people with a common interest. At least in the sense in which I think about it, community is a bit tighter knit than that definition suggests. To me, a community is a group of people brought together under a common interest (sure) but that stay together because of their connection and care for each other. In other words, a community becomes a sort of “chosen family”. In their comparison, the person I heard speak yesterday brought up that just like we all serve a specific role in our family that cannot be filled by someone else, we also serve a specific, irreplaceable role in our communities. I thought this was a beautiful idea, and I find myself more drawn to it the more I consider the ecosystems surrounding my sit spot. 

There is a beautiful dualism in which that specific ant crawling down the trunk of the tree right now is irreplaceable and important, even though it seems small and insignificant. As humans, we may feel small and insignificant when considering the vastness of space (or consider the meaning of life) and this is a great reminder when we overthink something or are in a position in which we must forgive ourselves, but we are also irreplaceable and important (which hopefully we remember and really feel). 

There was a time in which we were not a part of all of the communities that we are now a part of. Imagine how many more communities we may join in our lives—it is an exciting thought.