Reconnect Lesson 7: Your Piece of the Puzzle

Imagine you’re a piece of a puzzle, connected on all sides to others in various ways.

Looking at the big picture, you can see that all the pieces are interconnected. If one piece of the puzzle is missing, there’s a hole. The picture is incomplete.

Can you see how you’re a necessary part of the big picture, an essential piece of the Divine Oneness that is our human community?

What your piece looks like and where it fits within the puzzle will depend on your personality type and preferences.

Which communities you choose to be a part of will be different than for others. What’s important is that you find a good fit for you.

On the one hand, as an introvert who thrives in my time alone, I connect deeply with community through prayerful painting, creating and sharing inspiration online or for exhibitions, and serving clients at a distance. On the other hand , I also enjoy occasional roles as an in-person leader and teacher.  And although I prefer to see friends one at a time for a deeper connection, I also enjoy group retreats, my French improv theatre group ,and my kirtan chanting group. Those last two resulted from a conscious effort to get out more now that I’m not in the classroom every day.

Communing with community can take many forms.

Take a look at the shape and size of your puzzle piece and how it touches all sorts of communities on every side.

The knobs represent the communities in which you’re giving. The sockets represent the communities in which you’re receiving. The flush edges are those in which the flow of giving and receiving are equal.

Sometimes, you’ll be more of a giver in one community and more of a receiver in another.

A puzzle piece that fits comfortably in the big picture is one in which there is a balance of knobs, sockets and flush edges.

In this exercise, take inventory of all the communities you’re a part of – family, work, social groups, volunteer positions, leadership roles, audience roles, etc.  Also look at the balance of online and in person communities.

Are you feeling a sense of support and nourishment from some communities?

Are you feeling a sense of purpose and contribution in others?

Does the energy flow feel balanced in your life overall? This doesn’t always mean from the same community. You might be a big giver in one group, a big receiver in another and more of a passive presence in yet another. And sometime you receive so much by the very act of giving.

What often happens, however, is that we get involved in various communities out of obligation or inability to say “no”. We might overcommit ourselves to the detriment of our need for solo time.

Or perhaps we retreat from community for a variety of reasons and end up feeling lonely, separate, or useless.

Here’s your invitation to look at and reshape your puzzle piece if needed.

Is it time to drop some communities that deplete you? Is it time to find new communities that nourish you?

Are all your communities work related? Do you need to join new groups for fun or spiritual sharing?

What works  for you? Consciously create your way of communing with community in a way that’s aligned with your True Self.

Your puzzle piece may change shapes many times in your lifetime, depending on circumstances, location, etc. That’s OK!

Have you ever felt moved to be somewhere or do something but you had no idea why? Did you act on that inspiration or did your logical mind talk you out of it because it was out of the ordinary or a stretch of your comfort zones?

Better yet, have you ever acted on an inspiration to go somewhere or do something to later have it revealed how you ended up being an important piece of the puzzle in a bigger picture you couldn’t have foreseen?

Exercise 2 is all about following those Spirit Calls and trusting that you’re acting on behalf of something greater even if you can’t see the big picture.

It’s not that we’re the Universe’s puppets. But the Universe will act through those open to its messages to answer prayers, manifest dreams, and more.

Trust that if you’re called to do something, even if it’s outside your comfort zone, you could be helping someone in need or placing yourself in a situation to receive the help you need.

When I took inspired action to be artist in residence at Ocean View Gallery for a week last April during my exhibition, I had no clue how my intention to be in community would be so interconnected to what was happening there and in the world.

I was painting “Communing With Community” and was guided to include the Rose Window from the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. I’d been moved to study its design for a few weeks already but wasn’t sure which painting it would be included in.

After deciding this was it, we heard about the devastating fire in Paris. The next day, after I’d started painting it, I learned that one of the gallery owners’ son, Liam, was supposed to sing there in 2 weeks. Instead, once my painting was finished, his Mother found him in the studio singing his solo in front of my painting.

Was I guided to paint this window to help process the waves of feeling sweeping the planet? Was I guided to be in Carbonear to support Liam in a time of disappointment? Was I guided there so he could support me in my time of shock? One thing for sure is that we were both guided there to share in the creation of a beautiful song-infused painting that connected us to a world-wide community of builders and grievers.

I’m not privy to the full extent of it, but this was a wonderful example of how acting on several inspirations led to a very touching community experience that was a highlight in my year.

For this exercise, start your mornings with your version of Saint Francis’s prayer – “Make me an instrument of Thy peace”. Then stay open to how you might be moved to act in the service of community. 

It may be through:

• a random act of kindness
• reaching out to someone who crosses your mind
• being directed to be in a certain place at a certain time
• etc.

You may never know how big a difference you’re making in your community. A simple smile can save a life.

P.S.   “Communing With Community”  – Original SOLD –  prints in your desired medium & size are available for purchase.Thank you for supporting my art!

P. P.S. You can read the original post on the co-creative process for the painting “The Perfect Unfolding” on my blog here.