As I reflect on the weekend of the tornadoes and widespread power outages there is much to ponder. The trees on our street in Greenboro are mostly all toppled by the tail end of one of the tornadoes. A few houses are damages and 5-6 vehicles crushed. We were not home at the time and our property was not affected – except for a buckled fence. We only lost power for 11 hours. I am feeling grateful and also guilty – mostly a large dose of humility at the power of the storm.
On Saturday morning, the neighbourhood came alive as chainsaws started up and people helped move branches, etc. I talked with more neighbours in those couple of hours than I had for months. There are lots of stories of how the people helped one another.
In most of the newscasts about the neighbourly assistance, the adjectives that are used are amazing and astonishing. There is an element or tone of surprise that people would help one another. The same element of surprise in the media comes around each time there is such an event. You would think that eventually they wouldn’t be surprised!
Has our culture become that convinced that it is all about the individual and making it on our own, that helping one another seems shocking? Has the narrative of the culture become so dis-connected from the experience and importance of community that it is surprising news when community happens?
I believe that compassion and helping are more of a natural human instinct than are isolation and apathy. So, why does the culture continue to preach individualism? Whose interests are served?
In a world of isolation and apathy, communities of faith offer that chance to connect with one another, to channel the compassion that is our human instinct and to nurture hope. That opportunity is lived out each week.
