Have you heard? We're starting something new!

Hey everybody!

I don’t know if you’ve had a chance to listen to yesterday’s episode of our podcast, but if you haven’t, you should know that we’re starting something new at the Neighboring Movement! Like the name of our nonprofit, it’s less that we’re starting something new than we’re really just giving a name to something that we believe already exists. In this case, what we believe already exists is a community of people, and specifically, a community of people who don’t want to go back….

You see, at the Neighboring Movement, we’ve been thinking about coronavirus recovery. But here’s the thing: we don’t want to just recover; we want to move forward. Because we don’t want to just go back to pre-coronavirus normal; we can do so much better than that!

We believe that people all around the world are longing for a new normal and willing to work towards that new normal. So, we gave these people a name: the gappers. They are willing to stand in the gap, the space between what has been and what is coming. While it’s a good space, it’s also an uncomfortable space, and it’s made up of smaller gaps, too. We believe there are three main gaps within the space:

1. local___global

   This gap asks the question, “How do we foster relationships with our fellow humans on every scale of community that we are a part of, from the most local: our block, to the most global: our planetary home?”

2. consumers___producers

   This gap asks the question, “How do we move from being primarily consumers, and consumers of resources that benefit few, to being primarily producers, and producers of resources that benefit all?”

3. happy___joyful

   This gap asks the question, “How do we move from pursuing temporary happiness to embodying sustained joy?”

Do you feel the tension of these? We do, and we can’t ignore it! But even if you don’t resonate with these specific gaps, here’s the question: Are you longing for a new normal and willing to work towards that new normal? If so, then YOU ALREADY ARE A GAPPER, and we, your fellow gappers, want to learn from you! We’re all in this together, and we’re all learning from one another. So, what our nonprofit has decided to do is to set up some calls with this experimental community. The plan right now is that we will organize a series of calls, and help facilitate conversation in them, so that, together, we can share stories and tips around this gapping work. Would you like to sign up to be a part of these calls? If so, click on one of the buttons in this blog, input your information, and we will be in touch. Would you like to learn more about all of this first? If so, click here. We hope to talk to you soon!