Until these past strange weeks as COVID-19 became a household name in the US, I thought I knew what community meant. But I didn't.

We all live in various communities, but until a few weeks ago, that usually just meant physical proximity for most of us. Now that that’s been taken away from most of us, we’ve had to learn a new, fresh meaning of community. And if you're like me, it's come with some hard lessons.

Children know what it means to be community: they easily share with others, play often with friends, and look to wiser folks for guidance and instruction.  Now I don’t know about you, but I could surely use more community from the eyes of our children (even though playing with others might have to wait a few months!). It's not just living beside someone as their neighbor, but looking out for others, all their needs. What a lesson.

In our new community, we are calling and texting friends and family more, especially those vulnerable in our midst. We are eagerly posting messages of help and supplies to neighbors who can’t get out, whether it’s because of health concerns, fear, or anxiety. We are listening to the health experts among us, and following their guidance so that we ALL get through this. No one gets left behind because of our selfishness and desire for an uninterrupted life.

We’re all in agreement, we’re all banding together – leaving our individuality aside for the good of the group. And that's Community. May we never forget this again.