June 29: Day 180

It's difficult to believe that the year 2025 is almost half over. July 2nd is the 183rd day of the year, making noon of that day the halfway point. I can't say that I've accomplished anything significant in the first half of the year, nor do I have any great plans to achieve greatness of any kind in the second half of the year.
Unfortunately, I am happy to enjoy each day as it comes and I tend to enjoy the simplicity and beauty of the small world around me.

Although I truly have very few people encounters throughout the week, I did manage a few good conversations last week. Reflecting on how much I've changed over the past few decades is interesting. Going from Southern Baptist Evangelist and doing revivals and kid camps that were complete with altar calls and encouragement for repentance and surrender to the religion of Jesus is pretty far from the seldom going to church, anti-religion, to each their own, but still a Christ follower that I am now.

In my few conversations with people, I find that many are searching for a community in an otherwise chaotic world. A trusted community seems to be an elusive thing for many adults in the US. It may be so in other cultures, as well, but I think that the competitive way of life in the US has destroyed community as a culture here. We would rather get ahead of our neighbor as individuals than to help the community be better as a whole. We seem to be far more concerned with getting more for me than doing better for all of us. 

Even as I recognize this need for community in our culture, I am not likely to be the one that ushers in the changes necessary to bring about the cultural shift. Community building requires far more people skills than I have in my limited toolbox. Plus, many of the community seekers are from younger generations and have community needs that I am unaware of. 

Perhaps something like the new cell phone restrictions in Missouri schools will help change the culture from the head down, eyes on the screen behavior to actual face to face communication with peers and teachers. The restrictions may provide more than eliminating learning distractions. It may bring cultural changes to how and when we use certain technologies.

Have we replaced our community with technology?
Have we taken technology that could give us more free time and used it to give us more time to work harder to make more money, accumulate more power, and achieve a higher status?
Has social media replaced personal friendships and interactions?
I think that is true for many people.

Honestly, I don't have much of a community. 
And that's okay with me.
I am fine with going to the ballgame alone, or going to watch the fights by myself. My only real hobbies are reading and working in the yard -- both are things that I do solo. 
Maybe I need a community more than I think I do.

Tell me about your communities.
How do you cultivate mutually beneficial relationships with groups of people?
Is it something that is teachable or easy to replicate?
Is community a basic human need?
Are we better off as a species when we work together?
If so, how have we gotten so far away from building and being cooperative communities?

Those are my thoughts.
What are yours?

John