expert at belonging
i’m not someone who usually calls myself an expert in anything.
someone i admire a lot told me i’m an expert at belonging.
it stuck with me, because when i think about the spaces i move through—at work, in my community, even in everyday conversations—i realize i’ve always been that person. the one who notices who’s hanging back, who might feel like they don’t fit, who wants to be invited in but isn’t sure how.
i see the gaps. and i feel a pull to close them.
for a long time, i thought that was just being nice, but i’m learning it’s more than that. the ability to create spaces where people feel like they matter, like they can exhale and be fully themselves, is so important to me.
when i see someone’s body language soften, when i see a group of strangers become friends, when someone says “i didn’t know i needed this”—that’s when i know i’m doing what i’m meant to do.
belonging isn’t about the big gestures. it’s in the small things. it’s the intention behind it all.
this is what lights me up. and now that i know belonging is part of who i am, i’m always looking for new ways to create it—at work, in my city, anywhere people gather.
because at the end of the day, we all just want to feel seen, heard, and like we’re part of
something real.