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We Need One Another
- Kelsey Kaiser
- Apr 10, 2020
- 4 min read
Updated: Apr 14, 2020
If I wasn't a teacher, I think I’d be a zoologist. Animals and their behavior are intriguing. Each species has their own forms of communication, migration patterns, and feeding habits. One aspect of animals that I find particularly interesting is their social behavior.
Some species are solitary. They live and thrive alone.
Leopards
Red Pandas
Koalas
Black Rhinos
Orangutans
These animals keep to themselves, usually only coming together to breed and possibly raise their young.
Other animals are very social. They live and thrive in groups.
Pods of Dolphins
Prides of Lions
Herds of Elephants
Packs of Wolves
Communities of Chimpanzees
These species don't just enjoy living in groups. They are dependent on these groups for health and survival. Lions hunt together, using teamwork to take down faster animals like antelope. All of the adults in a pack of wolves help look after the young. For chimpanzees, grooming each other is an important activity within their communities.
What about humans?
Humans are social beings. This concept has been around for quite some time. In fact, this claim was made in Politics by the Greek philosopher Aristotle.
"Man is by nature a social animal; an individual who is unsocial naturally and not accidentally is either beneath our notice or more than human."We are social by nature.
I like to think of our social interactions as involvement in various communities. Communities are groups of people who live in the same area or share some characteristic(s), but a community is also a shared feeling of fellowship among people as a result of shared attitudes, beliefs, interests, or goals. A community of people could consists of two individuals or have thousands of members.
People find community in many different ways. Some people are close to their family or their neighbors and feel connected to a community that way. Others find groups of friends and form a community.
Sports Teams
Clubs
Religious Groups
Coworkers
Musical Groups
These are just a few of the ways that people come together to form communities. Sure, there are introverts and some people like to be alone more than others. However, the vast majority of people desire connection to a community.
You can be around people and still feel alone.
Individuals can be surrounded by others and still feel alone because they lack meaningful connection to the people around them. As I mentioned previously, community is also about a shared feeling of fellowship among people. It is common for people to feel alone because they believe they are alone in their attitudes, beliefs, interests, and goals, and therefore, they do not feel connected to the physical community surrounding them.
People of all ages, races, genders, and identifications can feel alone while surrounded by people if they do not feel that there is a valuable connection.
What can we do to help?
I know that seems like a bleak reality, but hear me out. Eradication of loneliness appears to be a lofty task, but we can help fight this loneliness together.
Realize that being around someone does not necessarily fight their loneliness, but finding connection with that person helps build a community with them. Acknowledge that a person’s struggles, interests, goals, and reality are valuable. Connect through commonalities.
We fight loneliness with someone not just near someone.
And what if you can’t be near someone at all?
People can be physically alone and still be apart of a community.
While there are many communities that meet in person, there are also ways for people to be physically alone while still feeling connection to one or more communities.
Writing Letters
Video Game Chats
Social Media
Photos
This is especially true while we are in the midst of a global pandemic.
In these trying times, we still need community.
A global pandemic does not take away the fact that we are social beings. That is still true no matter what is going on in the world around us. If you take a moment to think about what you have seen on the news and social media, evidence of this is pervasive.
Communities that previously met in person are finding new ways to connect with one another. Gyms have been hosting online live workout classes for their communities of clients. Social media is flooded with "challenges" that bring participants together. Teachers are parading around towns in their cars to "visit" students. People are staying connected with family and friends through technology and closed windows and doors. Schools are going virtual. Neighborhoods are coming up with systems to check on older residents, such as colored papers in windows.
There is even one Facebook group that is dedicated to Governor Andy Beshear from Kentucky called "andy beshear memes for social distancing teens" that now boasts nearly 225,000 members from all walks of life, including people that are not even from Kentucky! To quote one member of the group, they “came for the memes and stay for the community.”
Why is Andy Beshear so popular? He is fighting Covid-19 with a sense of community! He has put aside political parties and encouraged us to fight the virus as Kentuckians and Americans. He hosts 5:00 pm daily updates, and starts each update with a powerful statement.
“We will get through this. We will get through this together.”
Currently, we are still in the middle of the global pandemic, but I ask myself the following question.
Is there any reason this cannot continue after we have defeated the virus?
The answer is that there is no reason that we cannot continue to support and connect with one another long after the virus is gone.
I challenge you to look after one another now in the midst of madness, and I encourage you to continue to build a sense of community long after the pandemic is over.
We are social beings, and we need one another.
Like what you read? Like and share this post below! You can also follow me on Facebook and Instagram @kneedtobehealthy
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