Where Do You Belong?

 

Where do you belong? This is a question that people ask regularly. "Do I belong here?" Belonging is a tremendous protective factor against forces that could degrade our well-being. In Jean-Paul Sartre's famous novel, Nausea, he unfolds the story of a protagonist who has lost his sense of belonging, and is experiencing psychological nausea. Geography is much less important than the question, "To whom do I belong?" Family. Work colleagues. Gym buddies. Schoolmates. Church community. Affinity Group. Friends. If you think about it for a second, people derive their IDENTITY from the groups they belong. Belonging has tremendous power. Am I in, or out? Am I one, or not? Am I accepted, or rejected? When that internal indicator of anxiety or depression starts to go off it may be that we're disconnected and vulnerably alone. Western cultures highly values personal agency, individualism, and freedom. Naked freedom can not operate alone very well for extended periods of time. We're designed to belong. On one side of the spectrum is autonomy, and the other is belonging. Belonging provides meaning, significance, and personal identity. Belonging is a tremendous protective factor against forces that could degrade our well-being. Belonging has the potential to regenerate our spiritual core, our soul, enabling us to hold onto the values that we hold dear.