Our goal is to create a beloved community, and this will require a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives.
~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
We envision a world where everyone can explore and create meaningful connections with the people and places we encounter. Building meaningful connections across cultures enables us to respond to diversity with curiosity, appreciation and respect. The appreciation of diversity spreads tolerance and creates a global community.
~ CouchSurfing vision statement
I’m psyched about couch surfing (couchsurfing.org). Because it provides a secure way for strangers to meet and stay in each other’s homes, it’s a great way to build community that transcends geographical boundaries. I was privileged to stay with some hospitable people in Canada, and Jim and I have begun to host people in our home, too. It’s already been enriching!
I love meeting people with an adventuresome spirit. I love the idea that people are willing to be open and available to each other, with no motive for personal gain. I love that the human community is simultaneously becoming larger and smaller. Above all, I love that humans can see ourselves as part of a worldwide community (I used to think it would take an attack from outer space for a global community to coalesce).
Here’s one more quote, from Desmond Tutu: We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity.
Amen, brother.
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What a fascinating quote: "I love that the human community is simultaneously becoming larger and smaller." Me too.
ReplyDeleteI think we definitely make the world a better place when we make meaningful connections with locals wherever we travel. I use Tripping (here's the URL in case you want to check it out: http://www.tripping.com). I love it, but I just wish it had existed when I was younger.
So far I've only hosted travelers at my favorite cafe, where they make The best coffee; but my friend Apo, who turned into this Tripping fanatic, has had really good experiences hosting people. Last week, he hosted a German girl who ended up staying a couple extra days because they got along so well. I'm hosting my first guest in a few weeks.
It's funny how the internet is supposedly making us more isolated in that we spend more time in front of our computers rather than interacting with those around us, but it does make it possible to spread good karma, to use social networking and hospitality exchange sites to open our homes to other people and embrace other cultures.
I remember when I was a kid, and even more so when my parents were young, the world and its countries had a very country-centric world view, a very "us - them" philosophy. But I think now we're realizing that we are all part of one global community, that we have one shared fate as a race, and I am looking forward to seeing how that consciousness continues to develop!