Community and the rest

This post doesn't contain fully-formed thoughts . . . just the beginnings . . . So I've just come back from visiting Hobart for a few days. I mean look at that photo - it's so beautiful. Katie, a Tasmanian friend up here said to me that in Hobart you have a community made for you, wheras in Sydney you have to create your own community. I've been thinking about that. There's this whole web of people who I know really well in Hobart and who know, respect and love me. So I'm at ease and confident when I'm there. In Sydney I get a bit overwhelmed by all the strange people, though there's things I really love about living here. I was thinking though that wherever I am, I'm the same person and there are people around who I can get to know. So there's no reason not to be as open and friendly with people in the city - it'll just feel a little harder because the environment doesn't invite intimacy and community. But people are still people and we all yearn for this stuff. Once I stop being scared of the people, I should actually be at an advantage because I've grown up seeing what a healthy community is like . . .