Dinner Gathering Around Community Self-Organizing

Tonight was the first of hopefully many monthly dinner gatherings for those of us with an appetite for reflecting on community self-organizing.  A few of us (adults and kids, neighbors and others) got together for a homestyle Italian meal of chicken cacciatore, salad, garlic bread, and red wine.  The prep itself was a bit of an exercise in self-organizing, as the first people to arrive scrambled to help finish cleaning up, get the pasta on the stove, and take care of puppy Gus…then, before we knew it, our first monthly gathering was officially underway!   

Some folks had not met before, so as you might imagine, we started out with the kind of everyday dinner conversation that fits when people are first getting to know one another.  It was a reminder of how different it feels to chat around the dinner table than to discuss around the office table. 

Since the gathering was intended as an opportunity for those of us who are interested in community self-organizing to get together to talk and reflect, our conversation then began to take shape around a single question:  Why does each of us choose to live here? Not what brought us here initially, but rather, what keeps us here today? 

Some people responded in relation to Sarasota as a whole, and others in relation to their particular home neighborhood.  These are some of the responses folks shared: 

• I came here, and stay here, to be with my boyfriend.
• It feels like there are more opportunities for me here – school-wise, and work-wise.
• I want to live where my family lives.
• I like that there are lots of people to play with around here. 
• I like the energy in the neighborhood – there are always people out and about, and neighbors say hello.
• I like that the bay is close by, and there is a bay-front park within walking distance.  I can go there to sit and look out over the water and think. 
• I like the architecture around here, and that you can hear the train rumbling by every so often – it feels soulful. 

It seems that we are attracted to this place for a motley assortment of reasons.    Some of us are choosing to stay close to a beloved somebody; some to stay close to the possibility of opportunities not yet fully realized; some to stay close to surroundings that, for now at least, soothe the spirit and feed the soul.

Why are you choosing to live here today? 

When we pause to consider the great diversity of motivations and attractions that connect us to one another, to various places in our midst, and to the invisible-yet-felt “vibes” particular to this locale, we begin to sense the wonderful, ever-changing, self-organizing nature of our community.  It will never be fully known; it cannot be controlled or forced; it will emerge in spite of and because of us all.  

So how might each of us make decisions and take action that optimally contribute to our community self-organizing for the better? 

We’ll keep asking ourselves this question as we gather once a month for dinner and conversation.