a community of thoughts

it's late. i'm up and wandering about in my little corridors of thought. why is it we are here? what makes the difference in people's lives? the questions swim and swim, swirling around.

i just got back from Ghana. there, you find such a different African dynamic. houses range from shacks of sheetmetal to mansions. you have people burning trash to cook on and people getting new paint jobs on their H2's. it's not Burkina. it has more roads. more cars. more resources. yet, the problems are there. education and opportunity. what share of the population can afford the larger lifestyle? is there anymore happiness?

i had my own pluses and critiques about Ghana that ultimately left me missing Burkina. i missed the laughter and the greetings. people care to say hi here. it's such a small thing to greet someone or to be greeted. it can even be annoying when you are surrounded by it day after day. yet, it leaves the largest hole when it is gone. it's community. it's that social responsibility to put your face out there and at least tell everyone "good morning".

Burkina doesn't have it right. neither does the States. but there is something to this saying hi business. there is something to community. it isn't something we have to think hard about. we know it. yet, it takes that annoying effort to build. i have the incentive to do it. it's my "job", my service. it's what i was sent here to do. to be integrated.

what about in the States? who cares if you know your neighbors, right? who cares if you say hi to everyone in the park? we're busy, after all. they could be anybody, including impolite, obnoxious or dangerous. and honestly, those type of thoughts are legitimate. so where do we find community? how do we define it? do we even express it out-loud or maybe just to ourselves?

part of community is this blasted thing they call the internet. that's connection. partly, it's the gym class or yoga stint. it's the plays at the theater, the church group and the parties we throw. it's what makes social networking sites important. we need our community. we need our family and friends.

it makes a difference to be supported and supportive. like i said, it's my job but, dammit, it ain't so hard (even when it is a bit, it's worth it).

so we have the connections at our fingertips. i guess it only comes down to what we do with them. it comes down to making that decision to not just be a part of your community but to better it. it's selfish and selfless. you want a better life and you want to better the lives of those around you. it's a good cycle to start.

i just sent off my key to my house today. i left the wrong light on for my kids, so my neighbor is going to take care of it. it's trust. something powerful and good. it's community. wow. a thousand miles from home.

it's no small wonder that you want to help those that you care about. that part is just natural, instinctual. but it's the caring, the building of community, that requires the will, the effort.

i see so much negative press. it's down with congress. it's down with oil companies. it's down with Obama. it's down with 'say no' republicans. but that's not our country. our country is built on the front porch and the sidewalk. it demands us to be a part of it, to be involved in doing the little things to make it work.

yes, we have to put up with the annoying neighbors down the street (mine call me "whitey" everyday, fun stuff). yes, we have to compromise. yes, it's worth it. yes, our communities need to be rebuilt, strengthened. yes, it requires us to make the decision and the effort to do a positive thing to build our community today.

yes, we can.