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Turn Toward Each Other

As someone who has always had a worst case scenario plan (and all my chosen family know this, so I get messages whenever there is something really wild happening in our world), who regularly gives workshops on disaster preparedness, and grew up in a country that is still technically at war, a fact that is very clear to me in all preparation and strategy is the fact that we cannot survive alone.

Your survival and life plan will not work if you are trying to do it alone. We can’t survive and thrive alone over the long term. We weren’t mean to. Yes, there are people who do “lone survival” out in the “wilderness.” That is something entirely different. What I’m talking about is, and you can witness in the crises all around us and the more frequent emergencies that we are experiencing, in order to be alive, you must be nourished by others and also nourish them.

We need community not just because it’s nice, but because it is essential for our survival. To our health, minds, strategy, growth, healing, understanding of the universe, protection, and in that community is not only humans, but all animals, plants, trees, air, water, and the very land itself. All of those are considered community. We can’t survive alone.

For instance, everyone knows by now that mutual aid is essential for liberatory work. And by definition, mutual aid only works through interdependence and community. Liberation only works through interdependence and community. So something that I want folks to practice more and more every day especially if you’re not used to it, is whenever you are feeling lost, or you don’t know what to do, turn toward each other. Reach out and find each other.

When we say “join a community,” it does not just mean you’re joining something that is always pre-existing, solid and static. It means you are part of creating that community itself. You are part of that. Online and in person, we need to do all of it. It can manifest in so many different ways.

Whatever you do, develop a praxis and ask yourself, is what I am doing right now contributing to community? Is it adding to making myself part of and making others part of community?

We can’t survive alone. We just can’t. Fortunately, we don’t have to.

We have so much. We have so many. Look toward each other, beloveds.

Published inCommunity Building

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