“Connection is why we are here. We are hardwired to connect with others, it’s what gives us purpose and meaning to our lives, and without it there is suffering.” ~ Brene Brown
I have always known this, as we all do inherently, but sometimes the reminder is necessary. We are wired for connection. There have been two critical times in my life when I have missed these connections to the point that it was detrimental to my health.
The first was during COVID-19. We were all there, and we all remember the feelings of isolation and loneliness that crept in as many of the events that had connected us to others were no longer happening. I was so used to coaching hundreds of hours or watching my littles do all their things that I didn’t know what to do with all of this extra time I found in front of me. Reading was difficult, with all of the issues in the world bogging down my brain, and a person could only read so much. After all, the characters of a book aren’t going to carry on a conversation with you, no matter how much time you spend with them. This was when my Auntie Michael introduced me to Shannan Calcutt and her writing groups. These groups gave me something I had been missing and filled that void with friendship, camaraderie, and, most of all, I got back to writing, which I hadn’t done consistently for years.
The second was after I went on leave from teaching. My main social group was gone, and with the time dedicated to education and coaching, I had a life-sized hole right through my soul. The leave had to happen, and I am thankful it did, as I am in a much better place now…I mean, I am sitting in a comfy chair by the fireplace in my very own bookstore; it doesn’t get much better than that…but I lost a lot, and the grief was real. I felt out of place and didn’t know who I was. As I went through the healing process, I found new ways to connect to others – I made time to develop friendships, I put myself out there more and said yes to invitations I might have said no to before, I leaned on my book club friends, spent more time with the people who matter to me most, my family – and I got to a place where I started to feel more at home in my life outside of teaching. A place where I was able to plan and implement my own business. A place where I have developed meaningful friendships with people.
Knowing how important connection is to our health and well-being has shaped the programming offered at Pen & Page. If you need to feel like you belong, like you need to find your people or want to be part of a community, I hope you can find all that here. From the events we host, like WESK Connect, to our book club or Needle Nook (crochet and knitting group) to the upcoming Dungeons and Dragons group, my goal is to create a place where people want to spend time. In this place, they are comfortable coming, participating, and connecting.
If you have any questions about the programming we offer or if there is something you would like to see, do not hesitate to let me know. Pen & Page is not only my bookstore but OUR bookstore, and I love what we are creating together.