“Human beings need a tribe like bees need a hive.” —Johann Hari
I love this saying because I have lived the truth of it.
For a long time, I didn’t really know how to let people in. I learned to just handle things on my own, hide what hurt, and keep moving. I wasn’t really trying to heal on my own—I wasn’t trying to heal at all. Because healing would require something I didn’t know how to do yet.
LET OTHER PEOPLE HELP ME!
Some of the greatest moments of change in my life came when I stopped doing life alone.
And connection changes everything.
Thirty years ago, at one of the lowest points in my life, I walked into a recovery room filled with people just like me. They were beaten down by life and suffering the consequences of their addiction.
And somehow, together, we belong. I lovingly refer to it as the land of misfit toys. For the first time in my life, I found my people, I found my hive.
That experience taught me the value of love, service, and connection. But looking back, I can see that connection had already been woven throughout my life for years.
I had been a hairstylist for many years, and somewhere along the way, I understood that the chair was never about hair. It was about people and the connections I made.
Connection had been a part of my life all along. I just hadn’t understood how important it was.
I found connection in nature, with animals, and with people. These are the things I love, and I wanted to find a way to bring them together. To create something bigger. Something rooted in love, connection, and service.
Because when we get down to it, I believe that’s what we’re here to do—to love and be of service to one another.
