10 Feb Lets Gather again
In a world full of boundary fences, individual rights, high mortgages, content on demand, social media and just the general business of city life I am wondering what has happened to ‘community’. As much as we might laugh at the antics of our grand parents (Friday dances at the local hall, church picnics on Sunday, no locked houses with neighbours calling around with a casserole for a night of cards) there is a pull to the simple times when neighbours knew each other and social gatherings were abundant.
I remember growing up in a dead end street with other families and the time we spent on our bikes, in huts we made and running between all our houses after school. It was great to be free both to play but to gather and roam into each others property and play, if we got too much for one family they were allowed to tell us off and even make us tidy up our mess before we left.
If it takes a community to raise our children then we need to intentionally form, protect, and grow our local communities. Gatherings are again needed, street parties, picnics, dinners, movie nights, coffee, casseroles when it all hits the fan, and many celebrations of milestones…. These gatherings create safe communities as the more we get to know our neighbours the more we trust one another.
It does begin with sacrifice though, taking down fences, giving up precious time, opening up homes, organising gatherings, putting down the devices and creating room for others. Though it may start as sacrifice it quickly turns into lifelong friendships that are there for each other through the ups and downs of life and, on the whole, just makes life more fun.
Well that’s our take here at Sozo Coffee and it was so true on Waitangi Day when one of our Sozo family celebrated a significant birthday with our local community all coming together to enjoy it with her. Happy birthday Alice.