Connection and Community
A very happy women's day to you, my dear friends!
Hope you celebrate yourself and other women walking along with us!!
The first quarter of this year is almost over and it sure was nerve-wracking! The school shooting incident on February 14th was too close to home for me with my older child entering high school this Fall. There have been many more incidents throughout the year in this country but the 14th Feb incident tipped the iceberg for many.
It exposed a lot of issues in the system and the one that touched me was that a 19 year old had to resort to a violence to receive help! Thankfully, the surviving high school kids are very much in touch with themselves and connected with their peers. We might look down upon the millennials sometimes but their actions speak for themselves. Very brave and fearless, in my humble opinion!
I came across this article on connection as the opposite of addiction. We might think of addiction as addiction to alcohol or drugs but aren't we all addicted to our phone nowadays? Food, sex, alcohol, shopping, persistent violent behavior can also be attributed as addictions.
I am addicted to my phone especially when I feel lonely and unheard or there is a disturbing event to reach out for some comfort and support. But the connection I crave is never satisfied on the phone. And I end up in a vicious cycle of digging for more on the news websites, Facebook and (my go to) WhatsApp.
I have since realized I seek meaningful connections with like minded individuals face to face, hardly ever found on the instant likes of social media. Meaning connections take time and effort to build like a garden, a career, a family or an investment. They have to be nurtured and cared for on a very frequent and personal basis and definitely not on social media.
But who has the time? All of us seem to be on the hamster wheel! And unfortunately it doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon and the violent incidents seem to be increasing all over the world.
It's up to us to take a pause every now and then and connect with ourselves, re-evaluating and reiterating our values and priorities. And connecting with other people. It doesn't take much to be kind and offer a smile to someone if we have the peace in us. We are all in it together, like the trees in the forest, everything positive and negative will affect us all.
Women have historically been the center of their families and communities. We are sensitive, warm, empathetic and much more and if we remain authentic to ourselves and connect meaningfully with others, we can create a stronger community.
This quarter will soon be over and so will this decade, what changes would you like to see in yourselves and the world, my friends?
