community started at home
For the past few years, I've really wanted to build a community with Love Your Company. Find people who like what I'm doing and support my efforts. And with that, to also be part of a community of like-minded individuals on a similar path, who are just a joy to be around.
I'm pleased to share that I feel like I'm finally finding my people. I'm starting to recognise a few more familiar faces in spaces, find out about cool events by fellow founders, and genuinely wanting to go because I find their work interesting and want to support their ideas and work. I know how it feels, and if I can I absolutely will.
Now on the topic of community, rewind to a few weeks ago when I attended a 'community' event, but this time it was the Jain Association of the UK (JAUK), a community I've been part of my entire life. Literally born into it. Both my parents are from the same religious community and both sets of grandparents were founding members of this specific association, along with many others. I have fond memories setting up the stage display with my grandparents for our annual event at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. The big stage, messing around near the heavy curtains and seeing the space fill up fast. I even did a few performances back in the day. One was a religious poem that I recited and I'm pretty sure one was a Bollywood dance number?
This year JAUK turned 50 and it was a big deal because everyone's experience over the years has been different. Today the Association is much smaller in size, but attendance has trickled down the generations. While the founding generation are all elderly now and many are sadly not with us anymore, their children, grandchildren and even great grandchildren are attending the functions and participating in the shows. And as spouses enter the scene, now many non-Jains, it's been nice to see how welcoming everyone is.
This community feels different but is fundamentally the same. We only have two events a year and I make every effort to go because the people are familiar, some are extended family, and most I've known since I was little.
I moved back to London ten years ago and last year a lady who I didn't recognise came up to me and asked me if I was my mum's daughter because I looked just like her. She'd never met me before but she knew. That experience alone demonstrated history, connection, familiarity.
There's a collective understanding between members that our Association will only be able to continue and thrive if we make the effort to attend, support and nurture it, and I wholeheartedly agree.
I quickly realised that this community I've so badly wanted to build and be part of with my business hat on, is actually something I've been part of my entire life, and fully understand the benefit of such a space. I leave every function feeling happy and relaxed, and that's because I've just spent a few hours with people I might not see often, but whom I care deeply about and the love always feels mutual.