A Taste of Honey
One thing I do know: most of us who’ve had a taste of loving families, even a little taste, want our kids to be part of one. One other thing I know is that eventually you have to come to be part of a place -- part of its hills and streets and waters and people -- or you will live a very, very sorry life as an exile forever. Discovering meaning for yourself, and discovering satisfying purpose for yourself, is a big part of what education is...
An important difference between communities and institutions [or networking] is that communities have natural limits; they stop growing or they die. There’s a good reason for this: in the best communities everyone is a special person who sooner or later impinges on everyone else’s consciousness....Communities are collections of families and friends who find major meaning in extending the family association to a band of honorary brothers and sisters. They are complex relationships of commonality and obligation which generalize to others beyond the perimeter of the homestead.
When I first started teaching classes at a local homeschool coop, I was looking to network. I figured that it would be a good place to get an “in” for new clients.
What has happened is so much more -- I really feel like a part of the community.
For all of my clients, homeschoolers or not, I have felt like an extended family member, receiving their warmth & appreciation. Being brought into a community is different though.
This bond of commonality & obligation is very new to me. In my friendships there is commonality, however not the sense of obligation because most of my time in friendships centers around individual interaction. Obligation stems from reaching for a higher goal that is supported by those around you.
In my work I am obligated to the homeschooling community to bring them an educator who not only will be a dedicated teacher to their children, but also someone who they can talk to & share with. This obligation is a promise that takes nothing more than being myself which makes being in & giving to this community effortless.
Lately, I have also been more aware of how much I am receiving from becoming a part of the community. My clients are givers & I have received so many wonderful gifts just this past month. I think this giving stems from them taking a stand for me as a person. To name a few, one giver brought me into her world of personal growth & transformation for which I will be forever grateful. Others share community events with me. New sensory experiences are also brought to my life, like the taste of passion fruit, and fresh honey.
The givers share the richness of life. Thank you!
Saturday, September 23, 2006
