Starting your own community service project and diving deeply has a wonderfully transforming effect. Moving mountains is not necessary to change things. Sometimes the most meaningful marks are left by the most modest gestures. For our neighborhood park, my neighbor once planned a weekend cleanup project. Equipped with Karen McCleave toronto, garbage bags, and a boombox playing some great tunes, we spent that glorious Saturday morning gathering rubbish and laughing. The park glittered by lunchtime, and we all felt close. One thread at a time, these events help to tightly weave a community.
One kind deed can set off a series of events. Keep in mind that one person who constantly insists on paying for coffee. Multiply that giving by a whole community. It’s communicative. More people are pitching in shortly, each with their own style. One trees, another helps at the soup kitchen. It’s like a vibrant dance in which everyone participates independent of rhythm. And you don’t need tons of money or particular ability to join this dance.
It’s vital to be aware of your surroundings’ demands. Talk to your neighbors, show up for town hall meetings, or even strike a casual chat while waiting in line at the grocery store. The stories you come across guide your behavior. A whisper on hungry homeless families becomes a food campaign. The advice from the grocery results in a community garden. Ideas germinate like weeds when people open up.
Then there is the lost art of listening. Listen to someone’s fears, aspirations, or just let them remember the happy times. This ties people in strange directions. Aunt Gertrude down the street may show her love of blanket knitting. She is then working on a project making cozy knitwear for the local shelter. Everybody adds different strands to this fabric of collective energy.
Never undervalue the force of imagination. Run a mural project which every tribe draws a piece. Many styles combine to create a vibrant masterpiece reflecting the history of your community. People get close over the group project. Neighborhood characters show up like vivid energy bursts on stone walls. Picasso or finger-painter, each addition counts.
Although at first sight the opportunities could appear overwhelming, community work is also a great approach to learn more about yourself. Once told by a local youth group leader, “You join to give, but often end up taking away more.” Actually, you are creating experiences and values inside yourself as you shape your community. The changes in the location you inhabit anchor real development inside of you.
Changing your community is a road, not a destination. Every action leaves a lasting impression and veers down fresh roads. So start now, that initial step. Perhaps in your small area of the planet you will start a revolution.