Human beings harbor a deep need to belong. On a biological level, belonging is survival: If we’re not part of the herd, we’re left behind and die. In modern times, we need to belong to something larger than just ourselves to survive emotionally. We need to belong to feel accepted, loved, known, and, in a word, well.
Community is something we belong in—and to. If we break down the word “community,” the root is “common” and its suffix is “unity.” Community is a place where we share a common unity with others. A place where we belong.
In recent times, however, our experience of community has profoundly changed, largely as a result of our world becoming an online world. So much of life happens on screens these days, especially because of the pandemic. For many people, social media has become the new shared space, the place to socialize and find community. We simply don’t gather in person, face-to-face, like we used to.
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