In my 6 months in Austin, something I’ve realized when talking to most people is that they’ve found it difficult to find their community. Or as it seems it’s called now, their tribe. A group of people to do life with where it doesn’t seem forced. Where it’s a group of individuals who all genuinely enjoy being in each other’s company.
Many people start at a church. They get some of the interaction and even some of the community, but when it comes to being with a group of people that they truly enjoy being around and that enjoys being around them, it’s much rarer. People crave it and in some ways seek after it but at the same time are pretty selfish.
We seek these groups for comfort. It’s nice to be in a group where we feel loved and appreciated. It’s also just nice to be around people who get the way we talk, joke, act, etc. Who we naturally carry on conversation with. It’s hard to figure out who these people are on outward distinguishers. There’s nothing inherent to who these people are for each group, it’s just people who you click with.
That’s what people are craving. And that’s what I had been craving since I got to Austin. I had met a ton of new people, but I just didn’t feel that click with anyone. I really wanted to but I felt like I couldn’t force the click.
At the same time, I’ve realized how easy it really is to make friends with people. Today, I used the Spikeball app and joined a group of people who were playing up north of me. We ended up hanging out and going out to dinner and talking about all kinds of life. We plan to keep on getting together to play and talk more, potentially even start a bible study together.
Last week, I met three guys by knocking on random apartment complex doors and just meeting people. I found out that they are all active and also looking for community so I invited them to Ultimate frisbee on Sundays. We’re meeting up tomorrow to hang out and one of them wants to be part of a Bible study too.
It’s been so easy to go and meet people, now it’s just the task of finding the people that you click with. I’m excited to hang out with these new friends more and see what happens.
Regardless though, I’m thankful for the ability to play games and hang out with a bunch of random people I didn’t know yesterday. I spent 7 hours of my day today with new friends. What a life.
How do you meet new friends?