Bishop Carroll High School
Wichita, Kansas
Teacher: Angie Etheredge

Where to Feel Community
by Melissa Baalmann
9th grade

Kids playing in the street, the sprinkler system running, the smell of freshly cut grass, a clear blue sky over head, and the occasional squirrel running out in front of your car. When I think of community, this is what I picture. A small, quiet town is a great example of a local community. But does one know that there are many other types of community such as world, national, nuclear and extended family, ancestors, close friends, and faith.

The world community is how connected a person is to the world around him or her. Personally, the world makes me feel very small at times because there are an uncountable number of people and numerous places were mankind has not even stepped their foot upon. On the other hand, in the world today, I also feel very connected because the World Wide Web and global businesses. At any given time, you can talk to a person in different country on the World Wide Web. Plus people in global trading or any type of global business are always making transactions between men and women in other places or continents.

Whenever I hear the national anthem played at a football or baseball game, I feel the national community. The fact that we can all put our troubles aside and agree under one flag amazes me. When the country fell on the 11 of September in 2001 we, the nation were there for one another in spirit and in body. We may be just fifty states, but we stand untied under one flag and under one God. There may be other hardships along our country’s path, but I have faith that we, as a community, can once more pull together

I never grew up in the small community but just two miles away from all the excitement. A person can really love that one time every year when Heritage Day Festival comes to town the city park is alive with almost every one in the town. One can really feel the community. I love having a small town where you go walking down the street or go up to the tennis courts without having to worry about locking your doors. Like wise the fact that you always know whom your neighbors are and whom you can count on to baby-sit at the last minute.

I, also, come from a big family so there is a very strong sense of community. In my nuclear family, we are always playing cards and watching television together. In my extended family, we always are at one of my grandparent’s house for the holidays. On Christmas, we have a small brick house filled with thirty or more people there to celebrate and have a good time. When there is a tragedy in the family, for example my aunt’s father passed away, you can almost guarantee that any one in the family who can get there will be at the wake and funeral to help my aunt through this hard time. It is great to have such support from this community.

This community is very important but is one that most people do not think about very often. My ancestors were German. The long line of Germans that I come from goes on and on so much that soon I just get lost and try not to think about it too much, so I guess you could say that my ancestral community is not all that strong. If you pick out one person and trace them back then it can be fascinating to learn about them, but when a mother is telling you, “This man married this woman and they had 'x' amount of kids who married this boy who grew up to become a...” It becomes a little tiresome. My mother has a numerous amount of books that can be a great research guide for an English paper, but they are not exactly best selling novels.

My close friends and I are like peanut butter and jelly, you do not get one without the other and still have a sandwich. I feel that life just would not be the same without a great group of friends to live it with. This community is felt through the life that my friend and I share. We do things together outside of school, write notes to each other, and help keep one another out of trouble. When one of us is in need, the whole group feels it and tries to help. We all might not have the same interest on all levels but just because we do not agree on every thing does not mean that we hate each other. No, this level of community is very strong.

My final community is faith. The school I attend is all about faith in its teachings and its message. It is great going to a Catholic high school because you can meet other people around you who struggle the same and feel the same as you. I also feel this community through an awesome camp called Camp Totus Tuus. At this camp, there were so many girls who were just there to share the faith and live it out, and it really helps make my faith community grow even stronger.

In conclusion, there are many different types of communities from faith to family. Even though you do not know it you feel the community inside of you good or bad as it may be. For me personally, I think the way you look at community makes or breaks the way you feel about it. Always remember no matter where a person is or how that person lives his or her life, they are living in a community.

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