The word ‘community’ conjures many images. Maybe it’s running the tombola at a bustling fair or sitting in a cosy living room, dissecting the latest novel at a book club. It could also be smaller, more everyday things – chatting to your neighbour as you take out the rubbish or smiling at the dog-walker you pass each morning.
Getting together
Community means different things to different people. For some, it’s knowing everyone on their street. For others, it’s coming together with like-minded people, perhaps sketching at a local art group or volunteering for a charity. These days, many people find a sense of community online – if the connections are supportive and meaningful, then they’re just as valid.
Feeling part of a community can foster a sense of connection and belonging. It can also mean there’s help readily available, both emotional and practical, whether it’s discussing something you care about within an online forum or a neighbour lending you a hedge trimmer. Of course, no one has to throw themselves into being part of a huge community – there are other ways to connect, too. It’s about understanding what works for you.
Try the creative-writing exercises opposite and overleaf to consider your thoughts about community. If it brings up difficult emotions or memories, stop and do something entirely different. Listen to music, go for a walk, phone a friend – anything you find comforting and grounding. And remember, there are no right or wrong answers, and this writing is just for you.
- Freewriting warm-up (5 minutes)
To start, write about whatever comes to mind when you think about community. This can be concrete things – perhaps events or occasions – or it could be emotions that come to you.
- Feeling connected (7-10 minutes)
Now, try writing a short scene that captures your idea of a time you felt connected to a community, at any point in your life. It could be sitting around the dining table with loved ones enjoying a delicious meal, a work Christmas party where you laughed and had fun with colleagues or going for a walk in a local nature reserve, where fellow walkers said hello. Remember that community has a wide range of meanings, so try not to second-guess yourself. As you write, use your senses to help create a vivid picture of what it was like. Include how it made you feel, too – and this can include a range of emotions.
- An ideal scene (7-10 minutes)
Think about what connecting with community in the present would best look like to you. The preceding exercise might have given you some inspiration, but don’t worry if it brought to mind an occasion that wasn’t ideal. For this exercise, write about being in a scenario where you feel a sense of belonging and nourishment from community, again drawing on the senses. Who is there? Where is this taking place? Is there an activity or event? What is your involvement? Remember, this is about what would be ideal for you, rather than worrying about others’ ideas of what community might mean.
- Barriers to community (5 minutes)
Explore what might be stopping you or making it hard to engage with community in the scene you’ve just written. For example, if you wrote about performing at an open-mic poetry night but haven’t yet done so, is it because trying something different or meeting new people makes you nervous? Or is it something more practical, around not knowing if or what opportunities there are?
- Moving forwards (7-10 minutes)
Having identified ways to connect with community, think how to start making them a reality. This doesn’t have to be anything big. Gentle steps could include searching online for events or activities that interest you or striking up a conversation with the friendly barista next time you get a coffee at your local café. As you write, think about how it would feel to do these things. It’s okay if you feel resistance. Try to identify why this might be and anything you could do to overcome it.
- One thing (7-10 minutes)
To finish, write a scene where you do one thing in the coming weeks to connect with community. Writing in the present tense, picture yourself, for example, sitting around the table at a friendly writers’ group or meeting an old friend for lunch. Even if there are nerves, consider how good it might feel to be spending time with like-minded people, or to be experiencing somewhere or something new. If it feels right, resolve to do something in the coming days to help make this a reality.