I feel like hosting and gathering is something that you don't realize how much you miss it and need it until you kind of start building it back into your life.

And even right up until it starts, you may feel like, oh, why am I doing this?

But every time when people leave after I've hosted or gathered, I'm so recharged by that.

I'm so grateful that I did it.

I'm glad that I followed through. I'm

glad I didn't back out. And then it feels easier to do the next time.

Hi, this is Monica Packer, and you're listening to About Progress, where we are about

progress made practical.

As someone who is getting more and more introverted with age, I can honestly tell you that

I could go months without seeing or talking to people outside of my family and be totally fine.

Except, I recently discovered that may not be true.

This past fall, one of my kids took part in his school play, and since we were new to the school,

I had no idea the legacy that the school holds of having amazing productions, ones that

require a tremendous amount of creativity and labor all by

mom volunteers. As the play grew closer and my realization grew of just how big of a deal this thing is,

I tried to raise my hand more and more to contribute in whatever way I could, even though

it may have not been nearly as much as

others. And as I did so, I found something surprising, a community for me. I realized the truth

then about myself, my introversion combined with COVID and the stressful years that followed,

including busy times with our family and major life

transitions, all set me up to live on a proverbial island, one that was understandable, if not

even helpful for certain times. But even the small glimpse into a potential community that I

...