Community is the most important foundation for our society, before the economy, before state, before country. For without community there is no culture, there is no sense of place, there is no purpose to materials beyond producing them, and there is no society. All that remains are lonely people, isolated in their houses, forgetting that when the rain falls it falls on all our rooftops. Nothing is made of isolation; the human strength is in their comradery. Destruction and creation alike are born of companionship. So, lest we build our house upon the sand, we must first seek a good foundation on the bedrock of fellowship and unity. We are all longing for a sense of home, a place where we belong, a position within that place that we know as ourselves. Who you are, is who you believe yourself to be to the people around you. This to be fortified with validity from the people we cherish around us. For only once we are accepted unconditionally, established, and valued do we truly feel at home.
The physical mediums we can support our people vary wildly and reside in the talents you can bring to the table. We are all human, the same burning desire for change you feel, others feel too. Often it just takes one person to make the first move. In my home town of Dalton-in-Furness, there is a true community spirit and we have identified issues that have arisen due to the lack of opportunity and understanding. Like so many areas of the UK, our small town has become neglected, at times feeling forgotten, but not by the people who live there!
So now more than ever seemed like the perfect opportunity to show this dusty old town the love it deserved. From here I began the first of what I hope to be several community programs to help build the spirits of my home back up again, and wrangle together a group of volunteers as foolhardy as I am, to come and show some pride in our home by cleaning it up.
The Dalton Community Clean-Up group is volunteering all around the Furness area, dedicated to cleaning up our natural landscapes, and nurturing native species of plants and wildlife. Below you can see some of the good work we have already accomplished, which in turn brings a much-welcomed sense of pride to our home and a true sense of being valued in our community.
You can join our Facebook group if you want to get involved.