Today's Keyboard Smash
Jul. 3rd, 2020 05:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
scrubjayspeaksWe went grocery shopping today. While out, I ran into one of the ladies from my succulent club. We just said hi in passing. Briefly discussed needing to pay our club dues, which I had totally forgotten about again. It was maybe thirty seconds of interaction.
All the same, the reminder of what I'm missing was brutal. I miss my club. I miss having that one, tiny thing each month that made me feel like I was part of a community. Not that I had friends, exactly. I do have friends, but they're all digital contacts for me at this point, even without a pandemic in play. The people at the club aren't exactly what I classify as friends--I wouldn't call them if I had a flat tire or needed help moving or was having an emotional crisis. I probably wouldn't hang out with any of them outside of plant-related events.
But it was a community of shared interests and values, with certain rituals to observe. It was, I suppose, what many people get out of religious affiliation irrespective of the spiritual beliefs involved. It's that place you go, those people you know, in a very specific context, with a specific schedule, and you know you have that one thing no matter what.
I miss that so much.
All the same, the reminder of what I'm missing was brutal. I miss my club. I miss having that one, tiny thing each month that made me feel like I was part of a community. Not that I had friends, exactly. I do have friends, but they're all digital contacts for me at this point, even without a pandemic in play. The people at the club aren't exactly what I classify as friends--I wouldn't call them if I had a flat tire or needed help moving or was having an emotional crisis. I probably wouldn't hang out with any of them outside of plant-related events.
But it was a community of shared interests and values, with certain rituals to observe. It was, I suppose, what many people get out of religious affiliation irrespective of the spiritual beliefs involved. It's that place you go, those people you know, in a very specific context, with a specific schedule, and you know you have that one thing no matter what.
I miss that so much.
