I’ve spent my entire career in positions where I could develop a sense of community. I’ve always believed in the power of community. Vivek Murthy, the surgeon general wrote the book Together. It’s a stunning discussion and illumination about the importance of community for our well-being. Murthy believes loneliness and isolation is a public health issue, and so do I.
I’ve often equated community as each of us being a boat and our community is the marina. It’s the place we’re all tethered so we don’t drift into the sea. It’s an interesting visual, but if you follow my logic, it will make the rest of this journey make sense.
The truth is we need to be tethered. We need the physical, emotional, and spiritual experience of connection. It’s not only about meeting someone for coffee. It’s about making meaning of our lives. It’s what punctuates our existence.
For some, after a diagnosis, there is a time when the feeling of being adrift is front and center. The diagnosis, unfortunately, cuts ties with people. It’s not because people are mean, it’s because they’re fearful. Of course, there is the notion the person who is sick may die. There is also the feeling of helplessness.
What those in our circles don’t often understand is tethering isn’t about taking care of all our needs. For the person diagnosed with an illness, being tethered someone acknowledges we’re still here. We still have a place in their lives. We may not physically or emotionally be up to a party, but hopefully the invite is still extended. Don’t count us out till we’re dead!
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Pilgrim Pathway 
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