Local community

For years my local church has put on an Easter drama. It’s been such a gift to be involved and help as part of the cast.

Every year, about this time, I’m reminded of the joy of spending time with people in person; especially people I might not see as regularly without the planned event.

As someone in a remote job I spend a lot of time with people online. I love that, and I’m thankful for the community I’ve connected with through this great technology called the internet. It’s helped define who I am, and I couldn’t imagine a life without it.

And yet, there’s something incredibly special about spending week after week, hour after hour, alongside other people practicing for a performance. Because we’re all dressed in robes without pockets there’s little opportunity for the digital distractions of our phones. It’s essentially a phone free event where we move from room to room, whispering in quiet, and trying to stay on cue.

Through this event I get opportunity to chat with people, to hear tiny bits of their story, to have a great time sans most of the technology I’m used to in my daily life. And I love it.

It’s akin to touching grass. It’s seeing people in real life, doing something together. It brings out the best in all of us, coming from all walks of life, as we seek to tell a story each year.