Chasing the Light Together Blog No. 6
Rachel’s Thoughts on Community
Community is the fire that keeps you warm in the middle of the night, when all the lights have gone out and the blankets just aren’t warm enough. Community is what keeps you alive, reignites your spark and adds light to the darkest of moments. Community is unconditional support because on a good day, we can do life on our own, but when shit hits the fan, and it always does this, *insert* community.
Since this is our blog, I want to tell you what I require from my community.
I like that rough love. I do not need my community to coddle me, throw glitter in the air and clap when I walk through the door. The communities I live inside are communities where raw, blistered honesty is a requirement.
If I’m living inside my limitations, tell me.
If I’m not showing up 100%, tell me.
If I am built for more, tell me.
Your community should be your mirror, and this mirror will show you the good, the bad and say the unspoken words.
I also require freethinkers. The ones who do exactly what they want to do. Those who burn down their cubicle, open a business and never look back. The go-getters who throw up their middle finger to the HOA, buy land and build a beautiful home with a cat sanctuary out back. The ones who have a galaxy of goals, the ones who chose the other pill, who wear whatever clothes they want because society doesn’t dictate what color pants they can wear after Labor Day. Because freedom is mandatory.
Last, I require my community to hold space. To hold space for me and for others, and most importantly, themselves. Space for yesterday’s thoughts, tomorrow’s opportunities, and space for the plans of 2026. Space for when things feel lighter and the drapes allow cracks of light to tiptoe through. Space for when your bones are too brittle to even take one more step forward.
My community (I have several) is like my Fairy Godmother. They show up when I least expect it, their wisdom sits on the back of my ears and their supports lives in my details. Your Fairy Godmother never lets you down.
May your community bless you with the perseverance to create a reality that puts the Universe to shame.
A community begins with one table and two chairs.
Julie’s Thoughts on Community
Recently I was thinking about a time when I felt totally unmoored. I was lost, isolated and so miserable. Like most difficult times in our lives, when I was in it, I couldn’t see the forest for the trees. With the passage of time, I began to realize that I was mourning the loss of my community. I had just left a job that I had been in for 15 years and although I was excited about the new job that was beginning, I had never once considered what it was going to be like to leave the friends and mentors I had worked alongside behind.
I feel like the unmoored concept is really apt for how I felt. I was insecure and disoriented and struggled with the lack of purpose and connection that had been a constant presence in my life for the previous 15 years. I bring this up not to give you something sad to read but rather to ask you to consider the communities and connections that you can celebrate in your life right in this moment…right now.
In 2017, I was given the gift of becoming an entrepreneur. I thought this would be a solitary endeavor as my business is run solely by me. However, through the process of figuring out how to run this business I have also been gifted with many wonderful communities and vibrant connections that feed my soul just as much as creating does.
For instance, within each storefront where I sell my products, I am surrounded by other creatives who struggle with the same things I do. They balance paying rent with rising costs of materials while keeping their homes clean and families fed. They search for free time in the wee hours of each day to create their masterpieces and market them to the world, many of them doing so while working a full-time job.
Outside of this narrow focus and within a larger community, I am surrounded by complete boss ladies who have created communities of women who meet regularly to co-work and provide opportunities to learn valuable skills that will help us run our businesses better. I have learned invaluable lessons through this group and these connections help open my mind to possibilities that I never considered before. Growth and accountability are the name of the game in this circle and I am 100% a better business woman because of them.
If I look even further outside these two smaller communities, I see a network of art supply stockists and artists whom I work with diligently to foster connections. They provide me with support, suggestions and brainstorming sessions whenever I find myself struggling to grow my business. Even though we are spread across the world, they show up for me on Facebook lives just to say hello and support my business through social media. I could call anyone of them across the time zones, and I know they would try to support me.
Within all of these communities, I find connection and value in shared goals and common desires. I feel their warmth and understanding as we share our struggles and their praise and love when we celebrate our wins. While we are all trying “win” at this entrepreneurial game, we also intrinsically understand that there is room for all of us to win and for all of us to belong. That’s why these people are my people. I have found my tribe and I couldn’t be happier to be a member.
Julie & members of the Lake Country Currents at a Co-Working Session in Sept of 2025
Rachel and Julie Wrap It Up:
Our thoughts on the idea of community reveal the many ways community shapes who we are and how we move through life. Rachel sees community as a vital force—something fierce, honest, and freeing. For her, the best communities push you to grow, tell you the hard truths, and hold space for every version of yourself, from the strongest to the most fragile. Julie’s perspective grows out of loss; she felt unmoored when she left a long-term job and realized she was also leaving behind the community that had anchored her. Yet through entrepreneurship, she found new circles of creatives and businesswomen who offered support, accountability, and connection, showing her that even solitary paths can lead to vibrant communities. Together, their experiences underscore that community is both a safety net and a catalyst—keeping us steady in hard times and inspiring us to reach for more.
