My Beloved Community

"The beloved community is not a utopia, but a place where the barriers between people gradually come down and where the citizens make a constant effort to address even the most difficult problems of ordinary people. It is above all else an idealistic community."- Jim Lawson

MLK Day was a day off and not a day on.  This is the first time in a decade I wasn’t involved in some kind of community improvement project.  The project occupying my time is “self-improvement”; a day of quiet and reflection.

My life certainly isn’t a utopia, however I’m a witness to the barriers that have gradually come down between me and many people that I never thought would become friends.

Unfortunately, a cancer diagnosis is a difficult problem faced by too many ordinary people.  Even before my diagnosis, I walked with others facing their own challenge. Cancer is an equal opportunity invader.

The quote above has become a mantra, a hope for what we can become.  As I’m journeying through healing, recently I’ve began to look at my support network as my personal “beloved community.”  I am surrounded by ordinary people that make extraordinary effort to be part of a wide-spread support team, each making a contribution to my wellbeing.

On MLK Day a neighbor brought a bouquet of flowers to cheer me up, even as she’s going for a biopsy herself, adjusting to a return of cancer.  I received an encouraging phone call from a friend and church member to remind me that even if healing sessions are longer than expected, they are still healing.

I’ve taken my “beloved community” for granted until now.  Now, it is my lifeline.