Community

Have you ever felt the buzz in the air right before the curtain rises on a school play, knowing everyone backstage is holding their breath with you? Or the thunderous roar of a crowd when your team scores the winning point, a sound that feels like it’s coming from your own chest? Maybe you’ve felt it in the quiet warmth of a family dinner, the clinking of forks and the murmur of shared stories creating a blanket of comfort. It’s the strength you feel when many hands make light work of a difficult task, like cleaning up a park or setting up for a fair. It’s the harmony you hear when your voice joins a dozen others in a song, becoming something much bigger and more beautiful than a single note. This feeling is a powerful current that runs through humanity. It’s a sense of safety, of belonging, of knowing you are not alone. It’s the invisible net that catches you when you stumble and the shared joy that lifts you higher than you could ever fly on your own. You might not have a name for me, but I have been with you all along. I am a part of every team, every family, every friendship. I am Community.

I am as old as humanity itself. Long before there were cities or libraries, I was the warmth of the first fires. I gathered the earliest hunter-gatherers into small, wandering bands. Alone, a single person was vulnerable, but together, they were a force. I was the silent agreement that allowed them to hunt a massive mammoth, the shared vigilance that protected their children from predators, and the collective memory that passed down stories and skills through generations. Without me, survival would have been nearly impossible. As humans learned to farm, I grew and changed with them. In the fertile lands of Mesopotamia, I helped people build the world’s first cities. I was the plan that laid out the streets of Ur and the cooperation that dug the great irrigation canals, turning dusty plains into lush farmland. I was the combined strength that lifted stones to build towering ziggurats, monuments of shared belief reaching for the heavens. For centuries, people simply lived within me, understanding my importance without needing to name it. It was an ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, who looked around and saw the truth. He observed that humans are naturally drawn to one another, that we are, in his words, 'social animals.' He understood that we find our greatest happiness and fulfillment not in isolation, but in connection with others. I have worn countless faces throughout history—I have been the quiet loyalty of a small village, the bustling energy of a medieval city, and the grand, complex structure of an empire. On August 28th, 1963, I showed my power in a new way. I was the sea of over 250,000 people who gathered in Washington, D.C., for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. I was the shared hope in their hearts and the unified voice that listened as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of his dream for a more just and equal nation. I was the proof that when people join together for a common purpose, they can change the world.

Today, I am everywhere, and I exist in more forms than ever before. You can find me in the cheerful wave you share with a neighbor, in the study group that helps you understand a tricky math problem, and in the organized chaos of your school’s robotics club. The world has grown larger, but technology has created new ways for me to thrive. I am the alliance you form with players from across the globe in an online video game, working together to achieve a common goal. I am the fan club that connects people who love the same books or music, allowing them to share their passion no matter how many miles separate them. But I am not magic; I do not simply appear out of thin air. Building me takes effort. It requires the courage to be kind, the patience to truly listen to someone else’s perspective, and the willingness to cooperate even when it’s difficult. I am built with every act of inclusion, every shared laugh, and every helping hand. So look for me. But more importantly, build me. Welcome the new student in your class. Share your ideas and listen to the ideas of others. Use your unique talents to make the groups you are a part of stronger, kinder, and more welcoming. I am not just something that happens to you; I am something you can create, a gift you can give to others and to yourself. I am the incredible power of 'us,' and I am waiting for you to add your voice to the song.