Building Community
I’ve had some big learning moments in these past years. I’m not sure if it’s entering mid-life or raising my trans kid or the 2016 election or COVID that spurred these large stretches into personal growth—more likely it’s all of those things and more—but in my 40s (I’m 52 now), something shifted.
I started to really lean into getting to know myself, establishing my own boundaries, and more than that, enforcing them. I drilled down into my blind spots. I committed to silencing my defenses and listening to my fears long enough to understand where and why I felt stuck. I spent time courting my own discomfort and dismantled worldviews that weren’t serving me any longer with purpose, rebuilding with a new and clearer understanding of how I wanted to show up in the world.
What I’ve found at the root of this work is community. At its most basic, the lessons I’ve learned are about fostering a true and genuine connection to this world and the people in it.
I’m still a work in progress.
These are the stories, however, that highlight how I continue to weave myself into our shared global community.