The word “welcome.”
A tea light in a ramekin, with envelopes, hand written mail, and little writing prompt cards spread out around it.
Lately I’ve been thinking about the word “welcome.”
It comes from two Old English root words: “Wil” which means pleasure, and “Cuman” which means to arrive. The pleasure of arriving. Or, creating pleasure at the moment of arrival.
To welcome is a choice. It’s easy to let people drift in and out of any space (the grocery store, the family meal, the meeting) without pausing to feel and name the pleasure of their arrival.
But going from one place to another is work. We stand at a doorway. What will be asked if we move forward? What's at risk? How will be we changed by going through this door? To be welcomed is a profound acknowledgement of our humanity and the value of our presence on the other side of the door.
This reminds me of Bus Driver Dan. Dan drives buses in Portland, Oregon and is a total nerd for conflict theory. After a violent attack on a Portland bus in 2017, he started putting theory into practice and developing strategies for managing conflict on buses in real ways.
It all starts with welcome. Dan makes eye contact with every person who gets on the bus, giving them a personal greeting, letting them know he’s glad they’re there. He smiles even when he’s wearing a mask. The smile matters. If things get tense a few stops down, he knows he’s created a connection with every person, which will help him diffuse what might come next.
Recent studies show that trust is at an all time low, while loneliness is soaring. This is one of the challenges of our time — how do we live in our humanity, and invite other people to live in theirs, while we find ourselves more alone?
How do we still welcome, and let ourselves be welcomed?
How do we keep crossing the threshold towards each other?
And how do we live the work of welcoming in our everyday lives?
The work of welcome stitches the world together.
The simple pause of holding a door, saying, “I’m glad you’re here.” “It matters to me that you showed up.”
So let me say it to you, now. I’m glad you’re here. It matters to me. Welcome.
In it with you,
