I mentioned that I write mainly about traveling and the big and little pieces of our daily lives that stitch together the fabric of our community. Travel improves communities, opens eyes and minds, helps you see things in a different light, causes cracks in rigidity, pushes beyond the comfort zone, challenges all the senses.

Take, for instance, my trip to Southeast Asia in January 2020, as we were just finding out about COVID. These pictures ought to explain why all of the above reasons presented me with “opportunities” that would never have happened had I not traveled. A new piece of me awakened that month, thanks to the communities I visited and the people I met in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Viet Nam.

Wherever I went, I saw rich and poor people.  Sad/happy.  Working/not working.  All with their own stories; all sharing their stories with others in the community.  This trip strengthened my innate sense that no matter where in the world people are, they survive through their independence and their interdependence.  They understand they are a part of some bigger pattern, some better way to live.  They understand Service.  They understand Community.

We are a part of the fabric of life, connected to one another whether we want to be or not.  Helen says it best:

May each one of us make a commitment to reach out, lift others up, and share the joy of service, tighten the threads that bind us together, and weave the fabric of community that enriches our souls. May the strength of our individual quilts blend into a community quilt, shining a light so bright that people will not lose their way.

That’s about it for now.