Oneness

I belong to a Clergy group. We meet once a month during a brown bag lunch. Yesterday we met downtown. We alternate meeting locations. We hadn't met since June and it was nice to be together again. I must admit that after meeting with most of them for about a year now, I don't feel that I really know them personally. What I do know is their professional journey because it mirrors mine.

Belonging to a group of people who are like minded or going through similiar experiences as you is invaluable. No matter how others try to understand what your job entails, only someone who does the job will truly know what is involved.

So my message is that it's best not to expect family and friends to be able to feel your passion or frustration at the same level as you do. We tell them our stories looking for sympathy or support which may not look the way we want it to. That's normal and you can be okay with that when you remember you've lived it and they are just hearing a story. Two very different perspectives.

Pic... Our Oneness is like the trunk and the roots of this tree. Then we branch off and go in our own unique direction. We all understand our "roots" and try to understand each other's journey.