I Am A Commuter
For my entire adult working life (35 years now) I have lived in the same community where I have worked. As a pastor I often lived next door to the church, but never more than a couple miles away in the same town or city. It was a basic and essential part of my working life to be a part of the community where I worked. I am a strong believer in such community involvement. Where you live is an important part of your life. That is where you get involved.

Even for the past 22 months of working in the school as a chemical health counselor, I have worked in the school district where I live. I wanted it that way. I know the community. I pay taxes in the community. I need and want to be part of that bigger picture.

Well, at the beginning of next month that will change. I will be commuting for the first time in 35 years to work in a different community in a private clinic as an addictions counselor. That is a whole new idea for me to wrap my mind around. Most of the teachers and even county workers I have worked with in the past 2 years have been commuters. Now I will be, too. That is not meant to indicate a “bad thing.” It simply means that I will have to be more aware of my need to be in community and find the community both where I live and where I work. My community investment will have to be lived out in new ways.

I think I can now understand a little better why commuters have some difficulty having a “home.” Maybe I’m wrong- and I hope I am. But it certainly is a new way of life for me.